Americans’ View of the Economy Hits Lowest Level Since 2014, Conference Board Survey Says
According to a report from The Associated Press, Americans’ confidence in the economy sank to the lowest level in more than a decade this month as prices remain elevated and wages stagnate amid the ongoing Iran war.
The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index tumbled 6.7 points to 81.9 in September, down from 88.6 in August. That’s the lowest reading in the board’s survey since April 2014 and below the lowest level reached during the pandemic.
Respondents’ views of their present situation fell by 7.9 points to 109.3. Their short-term outlook also slid, falling 5.9 points to 63.6.
Americans remain flustered by the economy after five years of elevated inflation, potentially posing a risk to President Donald Trump and Republicans in the midterm elections, which are a little more than a month away.
Write-in responses to the board’s survey, collected from Sept. 1-23, were mostly pessimistic this month, with frequent references to the high cost of gas, goods and services.
“The Consumer Confidence Index deteriorated notably in September, following two prior months of softening,” said Dana Peterson, the Conference Board’s chief economist, adding that consumers’ views of current business conditions became negative for the first time since September 2024.
Trump has continued to blame high prices on his predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, yet inflation has risen since Trump’s inauguration last year.
Earlier this month, the government reported that consumer inflation accelerated last month and gas prices spiked as fighting in the Middle East dragged on. The consumer price index rose 3.4% last month compared with a year ago, the Labor Department said Friday, just like July. But inflation quickened month to month as costs jumped 0.4% from July, quadrupling the 0.1% registered in the previous month.
The Federal Reserve two weeks ago raised its benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2023 in an effort to quell stubbornly high inflation, and the central bank signaled another rate hike could occur later this year.
The quarter-point increase lifted the Fed’s key rate to about 3.9% and, over time, could result in higher borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans and credit cards.
