Souring consumer mood to hurt Democrats in midterms

WASHINGTON－A gauge of consumer sentiment in the United States fell 10 percent in May from the previous month, underscoring negative views on the economy. That's sure to hurt Democrats in November's midterm congressional elections, experts said.

The Consumer Sentiment Index released on Friday by the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers fell to 58.4 in the May survey, down from 65.2 in April and below last May's 82.9.

The index not only fell 10.4 percent compared with April, but also marked a nearly 30 percent drop year-on-year.

"This recent drop was largely driven by continued negative views on current buying conditions for houses and durables, as well as consumers' future outlook for the economy, primarily due to concerns over inflation," Director of the Surveys of Consumers Joanne Hsu said in a statement.

Consumers are feeling the sting of high food and gas prices, and they are blaming Democrats－the party that controls the White House and both chambers of Congress.

The Labor Department recently reported that US consumer inflation in April surged by 8.3 percent from a year ago, marking the second straight month of inflation over 8 percent.

On Monday, the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline hit a fresh record high of $4.619, according to the American Automobile Association.

Some believe that inflation could have even more dire consequences than the US Federal Reserve wants people to believe.

"Contrary to what the Federal Reserve would want us to believe, the only way that inflation is likely to come down from today's 40-year high... is if the economy goes into recession," said Desmond Lachman, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former official at the International Monetary Fund.

As a result of the Fed's shift to a more hawkish monetary policy stance, the economy will go into recession, not least because the Fed's higher interest rates and balance sheet reduction will burst the equity and housing market bubble, Lachman said.

"Inflation is a big problem for Democrats," said Brookings Institution senior fellow Darrell West.

"Voters are seeing rising costs for food, gas, and rent and blaming (US President Joe) Biden for these difficulties," he said. "It is one of the reasons Democrats are not expected to do well this fall."

Ford O'Connell, adjunct professor at the Graduate School of Political Management of George Washington University, said inflation "is going to lead to an electoral tsunami in the 2022 midterms".

"It's going to be pretty much everywhere, because inflation is a tax that all Americans pay," O'Connell noted.

Xinhua