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US Consumer Sentiment Declines to Lowest Level Since Dec. 2025
(MENAFN) American consumer confidence took a significant hit in March, with sentiment declining 5.8% to its lowest reading since December 2025, according to University of Michigan data published Friday.
The Index of Consumer Sentiment dropped to 53.3 this month, down from 56.6 in February, as households grappled with mounting energy costs in the wake of the US military offensive in Iran.
The deterioration ran deep across key sub-indices. Short-run economic outlook plummeted 14%, while consumers' expectations for their personal finances over the coming year fell 10% over the same period.
The sharpest declines were recorded among middle and higher-income households with stock market exposure, as volatile financial markets — rattled by the onset of military conflict in Iran — eroded confidence among wealthier demographics particularly sensitive to equity fluctuations.
On the inflation front, year-ahead expectations climbed to 3.8% in March, marking the largest single-month increase since April 2025. Long-run inflation expectations, however, remained comparatively anchored at 3.2%.
The University of Michigan noted that approximately two-thirds of the interviews underpinning the latest report were completed after the start of the military conflict in Iran, lending the data particular weight as a direct reflection of wartime economic anxiety among American consumers.
The Index of Consumer Sentiment dropped to 53.3 this month, down from 56.6 in February, as households grappled with mounting energy costs in the wake of the US military offensive in Iran.
The deterioration ran deep across key sub-indices. Short-run economic outlook plummeted 14%, while consumers' expectations for their personal finances over the coming year fell 10% over the same period.
The sharpest declines were recorded among middle and higher-income households with stock market exposure, as volatile financial markets — rattled by the onset of military conflict in Iran — eroded confidence among wealthier demographics particularly sensitive to equity fluctuations.
On the inflation front, year-ahead expectations climbed to 3.8% in March, marking the largest single-month increase since April 2025. Long-run inflation expectations, however, remained comparatively anchored at 3.2%.
The University of Michigan noted that approximately two-thirds of the interviews underpinning the latest report were completed after the start of the military conflict in Iran, lending the data particular weight as a direct reflection of wartime economic anxiety among American consumers.
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