The WSJ is reporting (reposted on Realtor.com) that consumers’ moods dropped further in November, according to a monthly survey from the University of Michigan, continuing a slide that has worsened amid persistent price increases and an extended government shutdown (which ended in mid-November). In addition, they say the survey reading is slightly above levels that sentiment sank to amid historic inflation that hit in 2022.
Americans are facing down an economy with multiple pressure points. Inflation has dropped from the highs that it reached three years ago, but at 3% in September, it has now remained elevated for almost half a decade.
“Once you start digging underneath the surface, it gets ugly pretty quickly,” said Jack Ablin, chief investment strategist at Cresset Capital.
Ablin noted the particularly sharp decline in confidence among lower-income households, but pointed out that higher-income households are also less optimistic than they were at the start of the year.
Click here to read the full story at Realtor.com.
Click here to read the full story at the Wall Street Journal.
