Largely reflecting a substantial deterioration in consumer expectations, the University of Michigan released a report on Friday showing a much steeper than expected drop by its reading on U.S. consumer sentiment in the month of March.
The University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index plunged to 57.9 in March after tumbling to 64.7 in February. Economists had expected the index to dip to 63.1.
The consumer sentiment index decreased for the third consecutive month, slumping to its lowest level since hitting 56.7 in November 2022.
"While current economic conditions were little changed, expectations for the future deteriorated across multiple facets of the economy, including personal finances, labor markets, inflation, business conditions, and stock markets," said Surveys of Consumers Director Joanne Hsu.
She added, "Many consumers cited the high level of uncertainty around policy and other economic factors; frequent gyrations in economic policies make it very difficult for consumers to plan for the future, regardless of one's policy preferences."
The sharp drop by the headline index came as the index of consumer expectations dove to 54.2 in March from 64.0 in February, hitting its lowest level since July 2022.
The report showed a more modest decrease by the current economic conditions index, which fell to 63.5 in March from 65.7 in February.
On the inflation front, the University of Michigan said year-ahead inflation expectations jumped to 4.9 percent in March from 4.3 percent in February, reaching the highest reading since November 2022.
Long-run inflation expectations also surged to 3.9 percent in March from 3.5 percent in February, reflecting the largest month-over-month increase seen since 1993.
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December 12, 2025 15:14 ET Central bank decisions dominated the economic news flow this week led by the Federal Reserve. Trade data from the U.S. also gained attention. The Canadian and Swiss central banks also announced their interest rate decisions. Inflation data from China was in focus as the country released the latest consumer price and producer price data.