US Consumer Confidence Plunges to Lowest Level Since 2014

US consumer confidence fell in September to the lowest level since 2014 as pessimism grew about the economy and the labor market.

The Conference Board’s gauge of confidence decreased 6.7 points to 81.9 after a downward revision to the prior month, data released Tuesday showed. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists was 89.

An indicator of present conditions dropped nearly 8 points to the lowest since 2021, and a measure of expectations for the next six months declined to a more than one-year low.

The report illustrates persistent anxiety about the cost of living, including high gasoline prices. Inflation concerns notwithstanding, consumer spending and the labor market have proved resilient. Friday’s jobs report is expected to show hiring remained solid in September.

The war in Iran has pushed gasoline prices consistently over $4 a gallon, according to American Automobile Association data. US retail diesel prices are near record levels, and the cost of heating oil has jumped ahead of winter.

“Consumers’ write-in responses regarding factors affecting the economy were mostly pessimistic in September,” Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board, said in a statement. “References to prices, the high cost of goods and services, and oil and gas prices in particular, rose to new heights.”

The Conference Board survey showed the share of consumers who said jobs were plentiful fell to the lowest level since 2021, while the share saying jobs were hard to get rose. The difference between the two — a metric closely followed by economists — narrowed to the smallest in more than 5 1/2 years.

Separate data from the government out Tuesday showed job openings in August fell to a five-month low.

Read More: US Job Openings Fall to Lowest Since March, Layoffs Remain Low

In the Conference Board survey, inflation expectations for the next year worsened, while the share of respondents expecting a pickup in interest rates rose to the highest in more than four years. Several Federal Reserve policymakers have argued that interest rates should be higher because price pressures remain too high.

The survey period for the report was Sept. 1 to Sept. 23.