NEW YORK, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Consumer Sentiment Index released Friday by the University of Michigan (UM) Surveys of Consumers rose to 52.9 in the December 2025 survey, up from 51 in November but below last December's 74.
Consumer sentiment remains nearly 30 percent below December 2024, in large part due to continued concerns about pocketbook issues, particularly the strain of high prices and the prospect of further weakening of labor markets, said Joanne Hsu, director of the UM's Surveys of Consumers.
The Current Economic Conditions Index fell to 50.4, down from 51.1 in November and below last December's 75.1. The Index of Consumer Expectations rose to 54.6, up from 51 in November and below last December's 73.3.
About 47 percent of consumers spontaneously mentioned that high prices are weighing down their personal finances, unchanged from November and well above the 35 percent seen a year ago. High prices as well as the impact of tariffs continue to be top issues for consumers when it comes to major purchases, the survey shows.
Throughout 2025, consumers have anticipated that a deterioration in labor markets loomed ahead. In December, about 63 percent of consumers expected unemployment to worsen in the year ahead, up from 40 percent a year ago.
"The escalation of tariffs in this past spring spurred fears of catastrophic inflation among consumers," Hsu said. "While those fears abated as tariff policy have since eased, consumers are still expecting inflation to remain elevated for the foreseeable future, thus diluting the potential purchasing power of their budgets."
