The US stock market fell sharply on Friday. The economic report shows that American consumers are increasingly afraid of rising prices, and increasingly fearing how President Donald Trump’s tariffs will rekindle the inflation crisis.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 748 points (1.7%). The wider S&P 500 also went down 1.7%, while the Nasdaq was down 2.2%. The Dow fell for the second day in a row, falling about 1,200 points on Thursday and Friday.
The latest University of Michigan survey released Friday showed US consumer sentiment fell in February in February, when a sharp 10% decline from January, according to the final reading. I did. This was twice the decline initially reported earlier this month.
The survey found that Americans have lost faith in the economy, driven primarily by concerns about Trump’s tariffs that could raise prices.
A new CNN poll released Thursday also showed pessimism that is rising due to prices. Almost two-thirds of US adults nationwide, and 62%, said they feel Trump is not enough to deal with inflation. A Michigan survey shows that Americans are now afraid of higher inflation on the horizon.
Investors grew up fearing that weak consumer sentiment could lead to a reversal of American shopping habits. Consumer spending accounts for more than two-thirds of the US economy.
Other things to know: There is no evidence that recessions are everywhere on the horizon, but recent economic data has weakened somewhat.
• Employment growth has collapsed over the past year as employers wait to see what the Trump administration’s economic policies bring.
•Housing continues to slow down. A report from the National Association of Realtors on Friday showed sales of existing homes fell 4.9% from the previous month, but prices surged to record highs that month, making American homes affordable prices exacerbate the crisis.
•Retail sales have also declined recently.
