Updated
Updated · CBS New York · Jun 8
48% of Americans Say Finances Worsened in May as Inflation Seen Hitting 4.2%
Updated
Updated · CBS New York · Jun 8

48% of Americans Say Finances Worsened in May as Inflation Seen Hitting 4.2%

3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Jun 8

Summary

  • 48% of Americans said their finances were worse in May than a year earlier, the highest share since January 2023, according to the New York Fed’s Survey of Consumer Expectations.
  • Future sentiment also deteriorated: the net share expecting finances to improve over the next year fell to its lowest level since October 2022 as oil, gas and other prices climbed.
  • 15% of respondents said they could lose their job within a year, above the survey’s 12-month average, while confidence in finding a new job dropped to its lowest since December 2025.
  • Wednesday’s CPI report is expected to show inflation accelerated to 4.2% in May, a three-year high, reinforcing pressure already visible in wages lagging prices and credit-card delinquencies at their highest since 2011.

Insights

As war drives up living costs, are American households heading for a deeper financial crisis than the data suggests?
With a new Fed Chair wanting lower rates, can the central bank fight war-fueled inflation without triggering a recession?