United States | Consumer confidence hits lowest in June

(Washington) U.S. consumer confidence fell in June, after already deteriorating sharply the previous month, and hit an all-time low, according to the University of Michigan survey’s preliminary estimate released Friday.

The index thus lost 14% compared to May, settling at 50.2 points, a decline that surprised analysts, who expected a slight rise, to 59 points.

“All components of the consumer confidence index fell this month with the sharpest decline on the side of the economic outlook for the year ahead,” noted Joanne Hsu, an economist in charge of the widely watched survey. markets.

The perception of current economic conditions fell by just over 12.5% ​​and the index calculating consumer expectations fell by 15.2% compared to May.

Households’ assessment of their individual financial situation has fallen by around 20%.

Some 46% of respondents attributed their negative sentiment to inflation, a proportion more seen since the Great Recession of 2008.

Inflation hit a new 40-year high on Friday, hitting 8.6% year on year, according to the Labor Department’s Consumer Price Index (CPI).

Nearly half of consumers surveyed by the University of Michigan spontaneously mentioned soaring gas prices, far more than the 30% who did the same in May and the 13% citing the concern a year ago. only a year.

According to data from the American Automobile Association (AAA), pump prices rose an average of 65 cents nationwide last month and were at a new high on Friday nearing $5 a gallon of super on average. (3.78 liters).

Respondents expect these to continue to rise with an anticipated median increase of 25 cents over the next 12 months.

For the 9^e months in a row, a majority of consumers also indicated that supply shortfalls were weighing on their economic sentiment.

“We expect consumer confidence to remain at historically low levels in the near term as inflation risks are still tilted to the upside and wallets continue to suffer from rising prices around the world. economy as a whole,” said Mahir Rasheed of Oxford Economics.