US consumer confidence continues post-election slump

US consumer confidence declined for a second straight month in January, according to survey data published Tuesday, as Americans grew more pessimistic about current conditions during President Donald Trump's first month in office.

Since his inauguration last week, Trump has signed dozens of executive orders and threatened to impose hefty tariffs on US trading partners including Mexico, China and Colombia.

Many economists have warned that Trump's tariff and mass deportation proposals could cause inflation -- charges rejected by the president and his advisors.


The US consumer confidence index fell 5.4 points to 104.1 in January from a revised 109.5 in December, the Conference Board announced in a statement.

This was below the market consensus of 108.1, according to Briefing.com.

"All five components of the Index deteriorated but consumers' assessments of the present situation experienced the largest decline," said Conference Board chief economist Dana Peterson.

"Notably, views of current labor market conditions fell for the first time since September, while assessments of business conditions weakened for the second month in a row," she added, noting that consumers were also less optimistic about future business conditions.

The largest fall in consumer confidence was among those under 55 years of age, while those over 55 saw a small increase, according to the Conference Board survey.

The biggest decline in confidence was seen in households earning more than $125,000 per year, while the poorest consumers reported the strongest gains, it added.

In a sign of pessimism about the Federal Reserve's fight against inflation, more than half of consumers surveyed said they now expect higher interest rates over the next 12 months, the Conference Board said.