US Consumer Confidence Hits 12-Year Low as Job Openings Slide

Tuesday, 29 September 2026. Two fresh reports on the US economy landed at 10am New York time, and both point the same way: Americans are growing gloomier and employers are posting fewer jobs. Here is what is going on.

Consumer confidence plunges to a 12-year low

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index fell 6.7 points to 81.9 in September, from a revised 88.6 in August. That is the lowest reading since 2014 and well below the roughly 89 economists had expected (CNBC, Reuters via Yahoo Finance).

• The Present Situation Index dropped 7.9 points to 109.3, and the Expectations Index fell 5.9 points to 63.6 (CNBC).
• For the first time in the question's four-year history, more people said their personal finances were bad than good.
• Average 12-month inflation expectations rose to 6.1%, and the median to 5.1%, both up 0.3 points.
• Households expect business conditions and the jobs market to weaken over the next six months.

'Consumer appraisals of current business conditions became negative for the first time since September 2024,' said Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board. She added that mentions of prices, and oil and gas prices in particular, 'rose to new heights, reflecting September's surge in fuel costs.'

Job openings fall more than expected

US job openings fell by 256,000 to 7.079 million at the end of August, from an upwardly revised 7.335 million in July, and below the 7.225 million forecast, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' JOLTS report (Reuters via Yahoo Finance, AP).

• The job openings rate slipped to 4.3% from 4.4%.
• Hiring rose by 46,000 to 5.192 million, and layoffs fell by 61,000 to 1.641 million.
• Quits were little changed.
• The steepest drops in openings were in professional and business services and health care (CNBC).

The labour market is still being held together by historically low layoffs rather than strong hiring. Economists polled by Reuters expect Friday's September payrolls report to show about 90,000 jobs added, with unemployment steady at 4.1%.

What it means for the Fed

The Federal Reserve raised rates by 25 basis points this month to a range of 3.75% to 4.00%, its first hike in three years. The CME FedWatch tool still showed about a 70% chance of another increase in October (Reuters via Yahoo Finance).

Sources

• CNBC - Consumer optimism slides sharply as fears escalate over rising prices and jobs
• Reuters via Yahoo Finance - US consumer confidence dives to more than 12-year low
• Reuters via Yahoo Finance - US job openings fall in August; layoffs remain low
• AP via Yahoo Finance - US job openings slipped to 7.1 million in August
• Dow Jones Newswires via TradingView - US consumer confidence fell sharply in September