Lates News

Joanne Hsu, director of consumer surveys at the University of Michigan, said that the U.S. consumer confidence index fell by 6% in March to its lowest level since December 2025. Consumers of different age groups and political affiliations all saw a decrease in confidence. Middle to high-income consumers with stock wealth were particularly affected by rising gasoline prices and the volatile financial markets following the conflict in Iran, with a significant drop in confidence. Overall, short-term economic prospects fell by 14%, expectations for personal financial situations over the next year decreased by 10%, while the decline in long-term expectations was more moderate. These circumstances indicate that consumers may currently believe that recent negative developments will not last long. However, if the conflict in Iran continues or if energy prices lead to overall inflation, these views may change. In addition, inflation expectations for the next year rose from 3.4% in February to 3.8% this month, the largest monthly increase since April 2025. The current reading exceeds the values of 2024 and is still well above the range of 2.3%-3.0% observed in the years before the pandemic. However, long-term inflation expectations have slightly decreased to 3.2%.