On March 14, Joanne Hsu, director of the University of Michigan's Consumer Surveys, stated that the consumer confidence index fell another 11% this month, with a continuous decline across all groups divided by age, education level, income, wealth, political affiliation, and geographic region. Market sentiment has been declining for three consecutive months, currently down 22% from December 2024.
While the current economic conditions have not changed much, expectations for various aspects of the future economy are deteriorating, including personal finances, the labor market, inflation, the business environment, and the stock market. Many consumers mentioned the high degree of uncertainty surrounding policies and other economic factors; the frequent fluctuations in economic policies make it difficult for consumers to plan for the future, regardless of their policy preferences.
Consumers from all three political affiliations unanimously believe that the economic outlook has weakened since February. Although Republicans saw a significant increase in confidence after the election, their March expectations index fell sharply by 10%. For independents and Democrats, the expectations index fell by 12% and 24% respectively, with a larger decline.
