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The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index in the United States increased slightly by 0.8 points to 91.8 in March, higher than February's 91.0. The Present Situation Index, based on consumers' assessment of current business and labor market conditions, rose by 4.6 points to 123.3. The Expectations Index decreased by 1.7 points to 70.9. The pressure from rising costs due to tariff transmission and soaring oil prices has been reflected in inflation expectations and other indicators. "Consumer confidence increased slightly in March once again mainly due to an improvement in the current situation outweighing a slight weakening in future expectations," said Dana M Peterson, Chief Economist at the Conference Board. "Three out of the five sub-items improved in March, leading to an overall slight increase in confidence for the second consecutive month. However, the index has been trending downwards since 2021." Data also shows that amid the oil price shocks triggered by the Iran conflict, consumers' average and median expectations for inflation in the next 12 months surged to the highest level since August 2025 in March. The net percentage of consumers expecting interest rates to rise in the next 12 months jumped from 34.9% to 42.4%.