Consumers see inflation easing, anxious about job market, personal debt: NY Fed survey

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A new report released Monday by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that U.S. consumers see inflation easing, but that worries about the labor market and managing household debt loads rose.

The New York Fed's latest Survey of Consumer Expectations found that respondents continue to see inflation at 3% a year from now and 2.8% in five years, findings that are unchanged from the prior month. It found that consumers' price expectations over the next year involved larger increases for gas, rent and medical care, as well as smaller increases for food and college expenses.

The survey also found that for the third straight month, respondents' expectations of missing a debt payment in the next three months increased with a 0.3 percentage point rise in August to 13.6%, the highest level since the early stages of the COVID pandemic in April 2020.

Consumers' views of the labor market were mixed in the report, with fewer worries about losing a job but also less optimism about voluntarily leaving a current job or finding a new job after losing their present role. 

US ECONOMY ADDED 142,000 JOBS IN AUGUST, MISSING EXPECTATIONS

The New York Fed's survey found rising concerns about consumers missing a debt payment in the next three months. (Paola Chapdelaine for The Washington Post via / Getty Images)

The perceived probability of an individual losing their job in the next 12 months fell by 1 percentage point to 13.3%, below the 12-month trailing average of 13.7%, while the probability of leaving a job voluntarily also fell to 19.1% from 20.7%.

The report also found that the perceived