NEW YORK: The US public’s near-term inflation expectations were largely stable in January, a Federal Reserve Bank of New York report found, as respondents to the survey also predicted a notable softening in future spending plans.
The expected level of inflation at both the one-year and three-year ahead horizons was unchanged at 3 per cent last month, the bank said in its latest Survey of Consumer Expectations released on Monday (Feb 10), while the expected level of inflation five years from now moved to 3 per cent from 2.7 per cent in December.
January also saw the public predict bigger future price rises for food, gasoline, rent, college and medical costs, while home price expectations increased to 3.2 per cent from December’s 3.1 per cent.
The New York Fed report’s relatively benign view on the future path of inflation comes just after a report on Friday from the University of Michigan that found a very sharp rise in year-ahead expected inflation, which rose from 3.3 per cent in January to 4.3 per cent in February, amid a broader drop in overall consumer sentiment levels for the month.
The New York Fed survey data was collected through the month of January whereas the Michigan survey period moved into early February.
