U.S. Consumer Sentiment Slips in Early September, Survey Says

Source: The Wall Street Journal.

By Anna Louie Sussman
anna.sussman@wsj.com
@annalouiesuss

Updated Sept. 11, 2015 11:19 a.m. ET

WASHINGTON—American consumers started September feeling less optimistic about the U.S. economy than in late August, according to data released Friday.

The University of Michigan preliminary September sentiment index fell to 85.7 from a final August reading of 91.9, an unexpectedly sharp fall of 6.7%. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal projected the early September index to stand at 91.1.

“Consumers still anticipate a weaker domestic economy due to the global slowdown and are less optimistic about future growth in jobs and wages than they were a few months ago,” said Richard Curtin, chief economist at Michigan’s Survey of Consumers, which compiles the sentiment index.

This is the last reading on consumer sentiment before the Federal Reserve holds a policy meeting where officials will decide whether to begin raising short-term interest rates. New York Fed President William Dudley last month cited consumer sentiment as a key early gauge of evidence from any trouble tied to market volatility and overseas turmoil.

Read more: http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-consumer-sentiment-falls-to-85-7-in-early-september-survey-says-1441981287