Consumer sentiment held steady in October, the University of Michigan’s final reading showed, with the index at 48.0 against 48.1 in September and 53.6 a year earlier. The current conditions index fell 8.3 percent to 46.7, a drop the survey’s director, Joanne Hsu, said was driven entirely by buying conditions for durables, which fell 18 percent on higher interest rates and affordability concerns, while the expectations index rose 5.4 percent to 48.8. Year-ahead inflation expectations rose from 4.6 percent to 4.7 percent and long-run expectations from 3.4 percent to 3.5 percent, both up for a second straight month to their highest since May, and sentiment now stands 15 percent below February, just before the Iran conflict began, Hsu said.
US consumer sentiment holds at 48.0 in October final
US consumer sentiment was 48.0 in the University of Michigan's final October reading, a tenth of a point below September and 10.4 percent below a year earlier, as inflation expectations rose for a second month.
Why it matters: Year-ahead inflation expectations rose to 4.7 percent and long-run expectations to 3.5 percent, both the highest since May, a week before the Federal Reserve meets with the policy path still priced as a hold.
Data as of University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers final results for October 2026, read in full on the survey's own site on October 23, 2026; all figures are the survey's own. Single primary publisher, the issuing survey itself. Developing item.
Sources
- Final Results for October 2026 - University of Michigan, Surveys of Consumers - 2026-10-23