Many consumers cited the high level of uncertainty around policy and other economic factors, said Joanne Hsu, director of the survey.
Inflation expectations for the year ahead jumped to 4.9% from 4.3% last month, the highest reading since late 2022, according to the survey.
While U.S. inflation cooled more than expected in February, according to Labor Department data, that may provide little relief to consumers and the Federal Reserve if tariffs raise prices in the months ahead.
“Frequent gyrations in economic policies make it very difficult for consumers to plan for the future, regardless of one’s policy preferences,” Hsu added.
The Trump administration this week imposed 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to the U.S., prompting retaliatory measures from trading partners. Earlier in March, the U.S. imposed tariffs on all goods from Canada and Mexico, before suspending them for all goods compliant with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement, which President Trump negotiated in his first term.
The administration’s argument is that tariffs will push Americans to buy more domestically made goods and help U.S. manufacturing. Critics say tariffs represent an increased tax for importers, who will have to shift some of the extra costs to consumers by raising prices.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said after a speech last week that tariffs would likely mean a “one-time price adjustment,” and he wasn’t worried about inflation. But many economists believe that tariffs have longer-lasting effects on prices even after they are removed.

Consumers from all political affiliations were in agreement that the outlook has weakened since February, albeit with varying intensity. The survey’s expectation index declined 10% for Republicans, while it fell 12% for independents and dropped more than 20% for Democrats.
Indeed, 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, Hsu noted.
Companies, too, are noticing the steady decline of sentiment. Delta Air Lines this week cut its first-quarter outlook, citing reduced consumer as well as business confidence.
The National Federation of Independent Business said small companies had lost much of the optimism gained since Trump’s election in November, souring on hopes of business-friendly policies from the new administration.
A gauge of employment trends by the Conference Board said momentum in the U.S. labor market is at risk of fading, as uncertainty over government policy prompts caution by businesses and federal layoffs gather pace.
Write to Ed Frankl at edward.frankl@wsj.com
Corrections & Amplifications
The consumer sentiment index reached its lowest level since November 2022. An earlier version of this article incorrectly said July 2022. (Corrected on March 14)

>>1392030
>Shockingly people don't have confidence in the market when the president is playing economic chicken with our key trade allies
I'm really, truly surprised.

>>1392030
No pain, no gain. Trump needs to stop playing footsie with the public and take absolute control. Prep the military and friendly militias for martial law. There is a segment of the population who is weak willed and won’t take the pain even if it’s good for them. They must be silenced. The new economy is going up and we cannot have opposition. It’ll be great. Something else Trump cam do is start heavily pushing consooming as a national virtue. Anyone who hordes is hurting the economy and society. It’s basically terrorism. People need to be extremely encouraged to stuff like this because they have proven to be dumb, even when they do the correct thing like vote for Trump and other tradcons.

>>1392066
>Anyone who hordes is hurting the economy and society. It’s basically terrorism.
So why hasn't he or you executed Musk yet you fucking larper.

>>1392066
you're not american

Economy will start rebounding once we cut all the parasites off government teet. No social security, no medicare, no medicaid, no free school, these are all money sinks that DOGE will eliminate. Once regular joes start getting money back into their pocket, they will start feeling better about the country.

>>1392081
see >>1392069

>>1392081
Every lefttard goes
>Think of the old people
>Think of the disabled vets
>Think of the orphans
>Think of the homeless
but what about them? They're dead weights. They're cancer. They're useless eaters. They don't contribute anything to society. The best thing they can do for society is to starve and die in the streets as a warning. They are a reminder to workers that this will be their fate if they slack and don't show enough gratitude for their jobs.

>>1392084
so you learned to ignore when i call you out shill? took long enough

>>1392084
The one thing I'll always respect the schizos on here for is that they're at least honest about where their policy positions will lead.

>>1392084
>orphans are useless eaters
Ok at least the other ones make sense in some kind of social Darwinist sense but how are you supposed to get productive members of society if you don't give a shit about kids?

>>1392084
Are you getting tired of LARPing yet

>>1392095
I think it's because they take state resources.

>>1392101
>>1392095
>>1392084
Orphans are employable. They aren't useless. Their size allows them to reach nooks and crannies that adults cannot.

>>1392105
Hey didn't they stop doing that because it had a ridiculous mortality rate and wound up resulting in less able-bodied men overall when they grew up?

>>1392106
if you're talking about the early industrial age, it was mostly because having a working class job was seen as a corrupting influence, or at least in victorian culture it was

>>1392030
>Consumer sentiment
Should be stamped out entirely. I'd much prefer people to feel constructive sentiment.

>>1392119
well if you keep ruining everything there won't be much of that will there

tRump runs the country like he did his bankrupt casinos. You bet on the stockmarket and take your chances. Whitehouse always wins though

>>1392120
>keep ruining everything
how so? this is all your fault.

>>1392132
on an existential level, perhaps. you're still being a faggot though

>>1392134
maybe it would be manly of me to concern myself with collecting trinkets?

>>1392135
you lost me shill

>>1392136
My contention is that consumerism does not produce fulfillment. The WSJ presents it as a given that it does. I am suggesting that you shouldn't accept this premise.

>>1392141
you ever had a girlfrend

consumer sentiment is meaningless. its entirely based on what the MSM tells people to believe. the MSM wants to sabotage Trumps MAGA plan so they tell people all this horseshit propaganda, and NPCs just blindly believe it because they're sheep. Consumer sentiment is completely manufactured and manipulated. The truth is that the stock market is back on the rise and prices are down on everything, including eggs. Tariffs have worked. DOGE has worked. NPCs don't believe what they see though, they believe what they're told by the talking heads on their phone screens.

>>1392144
so no gf ever. well i'd explain why you're wrong but you wouldn't understand

>>1392142
I have. It was pretty awesome.

>>1392146
I'm insulted you thought that was me.

>>1392149
well once you're an adult they need shit, and unless you're amish you have to buy a lot of it. "if a man could fuck a woman in a cardboard box he wouldn't buy a house". it's not necessarily good but it is human nature

>>1392152
eh, it probably was faggot but i don't really care either way

>>1392153
comfort != consumerism

>>1392156
it's hard enough putting ikea furniture together, you'd prefer sourcing the raw materials as well? be honest

>>1392157
I think once you have the necessities you can just stop. I think a lot of people think that. I think that's why they're trying to take the necessities away.

>>1392158
>I think once you have the necessities you can just stop
not your girl though. and unless you've really lived with women you'll probably disagree

>>1392159
I was able to provide satisfaction by other means.

do you hear the sound of vaginas drying up or is that just me

>>1392161
is your vagina drying up? I'm terribly sorry.

>>1392162
so no gf ever

>>1392163
see, if your image of women is as recipients of consumer goods you provide, and nothing else, then you're buying the advertising, not winning the girl.

>>1392165
that's women's image of life, not my image of them. this fascist takeover might change things but it's still somewhat unlikely, girls like being comfy and getting new sparkly things

>>1392167
>this fascist takeover
the evil empire is transitioning into an extremely evil empire. the liberal defense of the evil empire is nauseating.

>>1392168
listen man i just live here. i have a functioning set of gonads though, just like the vast majority of us

>>1392170
why are you blaming women for your situation? why not find some agency?

>>1392172
where did i blame them? i am aware of the system surrounding me, that's all

>>1392173
>girls like being comfy and getting new sparkly things
>i have a functioning set of gonads
I'm saying you may have more to offer

>>1392174
of course i do, thanks for the compliment. human nature doesn't deal in the individual though

BRANDON'S ECONOMY

>>1392192
That's like saying what Brandon did to the economy in the spring of 2021 was Trump's economy

>>1392068
so you're a welfare scammer huh? you should be executed for harming the economy. i hope trump and elon hunt you down