University of Michigan's Index of Consumer Sentiment posts preliminary August level of 71.2, down from July's 71.6; consumers saw little material difference in economic environment from July, but an improvement from three months ago

August 11, 2023 (press release) –

Preliminary Results for August 2023

Read our August 4th report, Post-Pandemic Views on Housing Markets.
Next data release: Friday, August 25, 2023 for Final August data at 10am ET
Surveys of Consumers Director Joanne Hsu
Consumer sentiment was essentially unchanged from July, with small offsetting increases and decreases within the index. At 71.2 index points, sentiment is now about 42% above the all-time historic low reached in June of 2022 and is approaching the historical average reading of 86. In general, consumers perceived few material differences in the economic environment from last month, but they saw substantial improvements relative to just three months ago.

Year-ahead inflation expectations edged down from 3.4% last month to 3.3% this month, showing remarkable stability for three consecutive months. The current reading remains above the 2.3-3.0% range seen in the two years prior to the pandemic. Long-run inflation expectations also remained stable at 2.9%, again staying within the narrow 2.9-3.1% range for 24 of the last 25 months. These expectations are elevated relative to the 2.2-2.6% range seen in the two years pre-pandemic.

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