NEW YORK, September 10 — Consumers turned gloomier on their own finances and the job market in August, according to the New York Fed’s latest survey of consumer expectations, with unemployment expectations climbing to their highest level since the early days of the pandemic. The bottom line: households reported worse financial situations than a year ago, grew less confident they could quickly find a new job if they lost one, and said credit was harder to get.
Expectations for where unemployment will be a year from now climbed to the highest level since the early days of the pandemic, the survey found. The same survey showed people are less confident they could quickly find a new job if they lost one.
Median inflation uncertainty — the uncertainty expressed regarding future inflation outcomes — increased at the one- and five-year horizons and decreased at the three-year horizon. The survey examines how consumers expect overall inflation and prices for food, gas, housing and education to behave.
Personal finances and credit
On personal finances, perceptions and expectations deteriorated, with many households reporting worse financial situations compared to a year ago. Consumers additionally expect a worse financial situation a year from now, and smaller shares of households reported or expected a better financial situation. Perceptions of credit access compared to a year ago also declined, with many reporting difficulties getting credit to increase.
The New York Fed, part of the Federal Reserve System, conducts this survey as a regular gauge of consumer expectations.
Wider economic backdrop
The findings land alongside other recent economic coverage cited by the outlet. A related story noted that 37 percent of Americans say they have gone to sleep hungry because of money issues, and another reported that the US economy stumbled with July job losses and sticky inflation. Taken together, the survey results point to a consumer base that is more anxious about prices, employment prospects, and access to credit than it was a year earlier.
