American consumers in December remained downbeat about the state of the economy, a new survey shows.
The Conference Board, a nonprofit group representing businesses, said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell 3.8 points to 89.1 in December, from November’s upwardly revised reading of 92.9. The latest figures are close to the group’s reading in April, when President Trump announced tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners.
“Despite an upward revision in November related to the end of the shutdown, consumer confidence fell again in December and remained well below this year’s January peak. Four of five components of the overall index fell, while one was at a level signaling notable weakness,” Dana Peterson, chief Economist at The Conference Board, said in a statement.
A measure of Americans’ short-term expectations for their income, business conditions and the job market remained stable at 70.7, but still well below 80, the marker that can signal a recession ahead. It was the 11th consecutive month that reading has come in under 80.
Consumers’ assessments of their current economic situation tumbled 9.5 points to 116.8. Write-in responses to the survey showed that prices and inflation remained consumers’ biggest concern, along with tariffs.
Perceptions of the job market also declined this month. The conference board’s survey reported that 26.7% of consumers said jobs were “plentiful,” down from 28.2% in November. Also, 20.8% of consumers said jobs were “hard to get,” up from 20.1% last month.
“Consumers’ write-in responses on factors affecting the economy continued to be led by references to prices and inflation, tariffs and trade and politics,” Peterson said. “However, December saw increases in mentions of immigration, war and topics related to personal finances — including interest rates, taxes and income, banks, and insurance.
Americans remain generally sour about the economy, with most grading the nation’s economic performance this year as either a “C” or “D” or worse, according to a recent CBS News poll.
“Consumer confidence continued to tumble at the end of the year, as higher prices, a weaker labor market and the waning impact of the government shutdown weighed on household perceptions of the economy,” Matthew Martin, senior U.S. economist at investment adviser Oxford Economics, said in a report.
“Consumers’ perceptions of the current state of the economy are at their lowest point in five years,” he added.
Consumers still spending
Consumer sentiment continued to ebb last month even as the economy accelerated. Federal data released on Tuesday showed the nation’s gross domestic product expanded at a blistering 4.3% annual pace in the third quarter, up from 3.8% in the previous quarter and the strongest rate of growth in two years.
“The latest GDP data confirm that even though consumer confidence is slipping, consumers are still spending,” Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics, said in a report. “The disconnect must mean that incomes are rising briskly. But the payroll report says incomes are slowing. So the data are not sending a clear message right now.”
Consumer spending accounts for roughly two-thirds of economic activity.
Last week, the Labor Department reported that the U.S. economy gained a healthy 64,000 jobs in November but lost 105,000 in October. The unemployment rate rose to 4.6% last month, the highest since 2021. Since March, job creation has fallen to an average 35,000 a month, compared to 71,000 in the year ended in March.
