Americans still feel worse about the economy than at almost any point in modern history

Scott Olson/Getty Images

US consumer sentiment fell to its second-lowest level on record in September as high gas prices further soured Americans’ views of the economy.

The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index for September dipped to 48.1, notching a 7% decline from August and a nearly 13% drop from a year ago, according to data released Friday.

The survey dates back to 1952, meaning Americans are feeling worse now than they did during wars, the 1970s oil crisis, 9/11, the Great Recession, the Covid-19 pandemic and the inflation surge afterward.

The four lowest-ever readings for the index all occurred within the past six months.

What happens when hard work is no longer enough? Phil Mattingly investigates

The final reading for September did, however, mark a slight improvement from preliminary readings.

The closely watched consumer sentiment gauge shows that Americans are deeply unhappy with the state of their personal finances and the broader economy.

After navigating a once-in-a-century global pandemic, US households have had to contend with higher-than-normal inflation – and the compounding effects of fast-rising prices – for the past five and a half years.

Those cost-of-living concerns only deepened this year as the US-Israeli war with Iran set off a monthslong conflict that negatively impacted the global supply of oil and escalated prices at the pump.

This story is developing and will be updated.

Scott Olson/Getty Images

由于高油价进一步恶化了美国人对经济的看法，美国消费者信心在9月份跌至有记录以来的第二低水平。

根据周五公布的数据，密歇根大学9月份消费者信心指数跌至48.1，较8月份下降7%，较去年同期下降近13%。

这项调查可以追溯到 1952 年，这意味着美国人现在的感受比战争时期、20 世纪 70 年代的石油危机、9/11 事件、大衰退、新冠肺炎疫情以及之后的通货膨胀飙升时期还要糟糕。

该指数的四个历史最低读数均出现在过去六个月内。

当努力工作不再足够时会发生什么？菲尔·马丁利对此进行了调查。

不过，9 月份的最终读数确实比初步读数略有提高。

备受关注的消费者信心指数显示，美国人对自己的个人财务状况和整体经济状况深感不满。

在经历了百年一遇的全球疫情之后，过去五年半以来，美国家庭不得不应对高于正常水平的通货膨胀以及物价快速上涨带来的叠加影响。

今年，随着美以与伊朗爆发战争，这场持续数月的冲突对全球石油供应造成负面影响，并推高了汽油价格，人们对生活成本的担忧进一步加剧。

此事件仍在发展中，我们将持续更新报道。