(Bloomberg) -- Consumer sentiment declined in September to the lowest level in a year as Americans anticipated a weaker economy in the face of a global slowdown and turbulent financial markets.
The University of Michigan’s preliminary index dropped to 85.7 from an August reading of 91.9, the largest one-month decline since the end of 2012. Households were less upbeat than a few months earlier about future growth in employment and wages, while 73 percent of respondents reported hearing of negative economic developments.
Some 17 percent of respondents mentioned unfavorable news about equity markets in September, the highest share since the height of the last financial crisis in October 2008. At the same time, sustained improvement in the labor market and cheaper gasoline will help shore up attitudes, which will garner the attention of U.S. central bankers as they consider raising interest rates as soon as next week.
Continue Reading for Free
Register and gain access to:
- Breaking benefits news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.