Consumer sentiment slipped in September amid concerns about high prices and rekindled trade disputes, according to the University of Michigan’s Surveys of Consumers.
The survey’s final results for September showed that the Index for Consumer Sentiment declined by 7% compared to a month ago and 12.7% compared to a year ago.
Surveys of Consumers Director Joanne Hsu attributed the decline to concerns over high prices, which weakened consumers’ views of their current and year-ahead expected personal finances, and renewed worries about elevated fuel prices and trade disputes, which drove down consumers’ short-run outlook for business conditions.
September’s Index for Consumer Sentiment is down 15% from January.
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“Overall, interviews reveal broad agreement across the political spectrum that the outlook for the economy has weakened since the beginning of the year,” Hsu said in the report. “After particularly large declines in sentiment this month, Republican sentiment is now 20% lower than January 2026; Democrats are down 13% over the same period.”
The Conference Board’s most recent Consumer Confidence Index, which was released Aug. 25, found that the index declined 0.8 points to 89.4 in August from 90.2 in July. Its Present Situation Index moved the other way, rising 6.8 points to 121.2 after three consecutive monthly declines. The Expectations Index fell 5.8 points to 68.2.
“Perceptions of the current labor market improved,” Conference Board Chief Economist Dana M. Peterson said at the time in a press release. But consumers looking six months ahead were “more pessimistic about business conditions and the labor market.”
The PYMNTS Consumer Expectations Index for September fell 0.7 points to 54.1 as views of the economy, buying conditions and job mobility weakened. Most of the decline was driven by consumers’ feelings about the economy overall and the timing of big purchases.
The report compared the current state of consumers’ personal finances to the fuel gauge of a car that holds the same number of gallons as before but is burning fuel faster.
“That’s effectively what’s happening to household savings. Confidence is holding steady, but rising costs mean savings buy less time than they used to,” the report said.
Despite the decline, the index remained above 50, which signals that consumers remain more optimistic than gloomy.
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