U.S. Consumer Confidence Falls to Over Three-Year Low, Expectations for Labor Market to Weaken Further

BlockBeats News, November 7th, due to the drag on economic prospects caused by the U.S. government shutdown and the worsening high inflation affecting personal financial expectations, U.S. consumer confidence has dropped to the lowest level in over three years. Preliminary data from the University of Michigan shows that the consumer confidence index for November fell from last month's 53.6 to 50.3, the lowest since June 2022. The current conditions index plunged 6.3 points to a record low of 52.3, indicating a growing concern among the public about the impact of the government shutdown.

The report points out that this overall decline in confidence is quite widespread among different age, income, and political groups. Although spontaneous mentions of "high prices" have increased for the fifth consecutive month, long-term inflation expectations have eased somewhat. Consumers expect prices to rise at an average annual rate of 3.6% over the next five to ten years, reaching a three-month low. The statement said, "Consumers are feeling personal financial pressure from multiple sources. They also expect the labor market to continue weakening in the future and anticipate being affected themselves." Concerns about unemployment surged this month, with 71% of respondents expecting the unemployment rate to rise in the next year, more than twice the proportion compared to the same period last year. (Golden Finance)