U.S. Consumers Lose Confidence at Start of Trump Second Term

U.S. Consumers Lose Confidence at Start of Trump Second Term

Confidence among U.S. consumers weakened for a second-straight month, reflecting retreating optimism of both current and future conditions at the start of President Trump's second term and expectations that inflation will rise again.

The index of consumer sentiment published by research group the Conference Board fell 5.4 points to 104.1, it said Tuesday, a little worse than the 106.0 expected by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal.

The index measuring consumers' expectations--based on their short-term outlook for income, business and labor-market conditions--fell but remained above the threshold that usually signals a recession ahead, The Conference Board said. Indeed, the proportion of consumers anticipating a recession over the next 12 months was stable near the series low, it noted.