November 6 — A preliminary survey from the University of Michigan shows that the U.S. consumer sentiment index rebounded by about 6%, with improvements across multiple areas including personal financial expectations and business environment expectations. However, the improvement was mainly concentrated among independent voters. Confidence among low- and middle-wealth consumers rebounded somewhat, while after recent sharp stock market volatility, confidence among high-wealth consumers holding large amounts of stocks fell 5%. Consumer comments indicate that concerns about an AI bubble are intensifying, but the cost of living remains the issue consumers care about most. About 57% of respondents spontaneously mentioned that high prices have eroded their standard of living — the highest since May of this year and higher than the 46% recorded before the outbreak of the Iran conflict in February. Although confidence improved this month, it is still down 10% compared with February. The survey was conducted from October 20 to November 2. Two months before the midterm elections, more than two-thirds of consumers expected the Democratic Party to win control of the House of Representatives, and more than half expected the Democratic Party to win the Senate. The inflation expectation for the next year fell from 4.7% last month to 4.3% this month, the lowest since August, but still significantly higher than the 3.4% recorded before the outbreak of the Iran conflict in February and also higher than all readings in 2024. The long-term inflation expectation edged down from 3.5% in October to 3.4%, still significantly higher than the 2.8% to 3.2% range in 2024.