Skip to the story
All stories

US Consumer Confidence Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014

Deteriorating views on present situation and short-term outlook cited as factors.

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published Updated
US Consumer Confidence Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014

What this story says

  • US consumer confidence fell 6.7 points to 81.9 in September, the lowest since 2014.
  • Views of the present economic situation dropped 7.9 points, and the short-term outlook fell 5.9 points.
  • High prices for gas and other goods, coupled with stagnant wages, are cited as reasons for the decline.
  • The ongoing Iran war is also mentioned as a contributing factor to economic pessimism.

Who covered it

Left 14%(5)Centre 33%(12)Right 53%(19)

Percentages are shares of the 36 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 65 of the 101 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .

Trust

42/100

Craft

61/100

Hype

41/100

101 sources · methodology

Missing from the left

Only 5 of the 36 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated left.

A reader who follows the left would not have seen this. We report the absence rather than explain it: outlets choose what to cover for many reasons, and we have no evidence about which one applies here.

Americans' confidence in the economy deteriorated in September, with the Conference Board's consumer confidence index falling 6.7 points to 81.9. This marks the lowest level recorded since 2014, according to some reports. The index had stood at 88.6 in August.

Respondents' views of their present economic situation fell by 7.9 points to 109.3. The short-term outlook for the economy also slid, decreasing by 5.9 points to 63.6. Elevated prices for gas and other items, along with stagnant wages, are cited as contributing factors to this pessimism. The ongoing Iran war is also mentioned as a factor.

Coverage comparison

What the coverage left out

None of the left-rated digests mention the specific figures for respondents' views of their present situation or their short-term outlook. None of the right-rated digests mention the specific figures for the overall consumer confidence index, respondents' views of their present situation, or their short-term outlook.

Coverage settled. We checked this 60 times and stopped on 4 Oct 2026, 21:30. The figures above are what it finished at.

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

5 rated outlets

  • Ten left-rated reports focused on the decline in consumer confidence, noting it reached its lowest point since 2014. These reports highlighted elevated prices for gas and other items, stagnant wages, and the ongoing Iran war as key reasons for the pessimism. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index falling 6.7 points to 81.9 was consistently reported.

Centre

12 rated outlets

  • Fourteen centre-rated reports led with the drop in consumer confidence, with many stating it was the lowest level since 2014. The figures for the overall index (81.9), the present situation (109.3), and the short-term outlook (63.6) were frequently included. Elevated prices, stagnant wages, and the Iran war were cited as contributing factors.

Right

19 rated outlets

  • All twelve right-rated digests reported that the US consumer confidence index fell in September to its lowest level since 2014. They linked the decline to higher prices, stagnant wages and anxiety about jobs. The drop was described as sharp and unprecedented in over a decade.
  • Four outlets, tippinsights, the Unknown source, Yonhap News Agency and Business Times, gave the exact index reading of 81.9 and noted a 6.7-point fall from the previous month. Each cited the Conference Board as the source. Clarin added that inflation and rising rates complicated the picture, while Sapo quoted the Consumer Board’s chief economist on negative sentiment since 2024.
  • None of the digests mentioned any specific cost estimate, policy response or consumer quotations. Only the Washington Times digests referenced the ongoing Iran war as part of the backdrop. No outlet provided a longer historical trend beyond the 2014 low point.

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover US Consumer Confidence Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014?
Of the 36 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 14% are rated left, 33% are rated centre, 53% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 101. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is US Consumer Confidence Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014 left or right?
Neither side dominates it. Of the 36 rated outlets on this story, 14% are rated left, 33% are rated centre, 53% are rated right, and no side holds the 70% this site would want before calling a field one-sided. A story is not left or right in any case; the outlets that carried it are what carry ratings.
Is the coverage of US Consumer Confidence Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014 biased?
US Consumer Confidence Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014 is one event reported by 101 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which side is not reporting US Consumer Confidence Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014?
When we first saw this story, outlets rated left had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
Which outlets covered US Consumer Confidence Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014?
101 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
How much did consumer confidence fall in September?
Americans' confidence in the economy fell by 6.7 points in September, bringing the Conference Board's consumer confidence index down to 81.9. This represents the lowest level the index has reached since 2014.
What are the main reasons for the decline in confidence?
The primary factors cited for the drop in consumer confidence include elevated prices for gas and other goods, alongside stagnant wages. The ongoing Iran war is also mentioned as a contributing element to the widespread economic pessimism.
How did views on the present situation and future outlook change?
Respondents' views on their present economic situation saw a significant decrease, falling by 7.9 points to 109.3. The short-term outlook for the economy also deteriorated, sliding 5.9 points to 63.6.

Read it at the source

235 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

30
Show 22 more

Centre

64
Show 56 more

Right

40
Show 32 more

Not rated

101
Show 93 more

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

US Consumer Confidence Falls | MediaBias News