本月，在伊朗战争持续之际，物价仍处高位，工资增长停滞，美国人对经济的信心降至十余年来的最低水平。
Americans’ confidence in the economy sank to the lowest level in more than a decade this month as prices remain elevated and wages stagnate amid the ongoing Iran war.
美国会议委员会周二表示，9月消费者信心指数下跌6.7点至81.9，低于8月的88.6。这是该委员会调查自2014年4月以来的最低读数，也低于疫情期间的最低水平。
The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index tumbled 6.7 points to 81.9 in September, down from 88.6 in August. That is the lowest reading in the board’s survey since April 2014 and below the lowest level reached during the pandemic.
受访者对当前状况的评价下降7.9点至109.3。他们对短期前景的预期也下滑5.9点，至63.6。
Respondents’ views of their present situation fell by 7.9 points to 109.3. Their short-term outlook also slid, falling 5.9 points to 63.6.
通胀高企已有五年，美国人对经济仍感不安，这可能对特朗普总统和共和党在刚刚一个多月后举行的中期选举构成风险。
Americans remain flustered by the economy after five years of elevated inflation, potentially posing a risk to President Donald Trump and Republicans in the midterm elections, which are a little more than a month away.
该委员会9月1日至23日收集的开放式回答本月大多持悲观态度，受访者频繁提及汽油、商品和服务价格高昂。
Write-in responses to the board’s survey, collected from September 1-23, were mostly pessimistic this month, with frequent references to the high cost of gas, goods and services.
美国会议委员会首席经济学家达娜·彼得森说：“在此前连续两个月走软之后，消费者信心指数9月显著恶化。”他还表示，消费者对当前商业状况的评价自2024年9月以来首次转为负面。
“The Consumer Confidence Index deteriorated notably in September, following two prior months of softening,” said Dana Peterson, the Conference Board’s chief economist, adding that consumers’ views of current business conditions became negative for the first time since September 2024.
特朗普继续将高物价归咎于其前任民主党人乔·拜登，但自特朗普去年就职以来，通胀一直在上升。
Trump has continued to blame high prices on his predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, yet inflation has risen since Trump’s inauguration last year.
本月早些时候，政府报告称，随着中东战事持续，上月消费者通胀加速，汽油价格飙升。美国劳工部周五表示，与7月一样，消费者价格指数上月同比上涨3.4%。但由于较7月上涨0.4%，通胀环比增速达到前月0.1%的四倍。
Earlier this month, the government reported that consumer inflation accelerated last month and gas prices spiked as fighting in the Middle East dragged on. The consumer price index rose 3.4 per cent last month compared with a year ago, the Labour Department said on Friday, just like July. But inflation quickened month to month as costs jumped 0.4 per cent from July, quadrupling the 0.1 per cented in the previous month.
两周前，美联储首次上调了自2023年以来的基准利率，旨在抑制持续高企的通胀。央行还表示，今年晚些时候可能会再次加息。
The Federal Reserve two weeks ago raised its benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2023 in an effort to quell stubbornly high inflation, and the central bank signalled another rate hike could occur later this year.
此次加息将美联储的关键利率提升至约3.9%，长期来看可能会导致抵押贷款、汽车贷款和信用卡的借款成本上升。
The quarter-point increase lifted the Fed’s key rate to about 3.9 per cent and over time could result in higher borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans and credit cards.
目前普通汽油的价格为每加仑4.46美元，但价格上涨的不仅仅是汽油；8月份，家电价格、汽车维修费用以及无线电话服务费用也大幅上涨。
Petrol prices – which currently average US$4.46 for a gallon of regular – are not all that is rising. Prices for appliances, car repairs and wireless phone services also jumped in August.
根据美联储最常用的通胀指标——个人消费支出价格指数（PCE Price Index）的最新数据，6月份同比涨幅为3.7%。这一涨幅低于5月份的4.1%，但高于2月28日伊朗战争爆发前的2.8%。而在2025年1月特朗普就职时，该指数的同比涨幅仅为2.5%。美国政府将于周三公布8月份的PCE数据。
The most recent measure of the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge – the personal consumption expenditures price index – was up 3.7 per cent in June from a year earlier. That was down from May’s 4.1 per cent year-over-year increase but up from 2.8 per cent before the Iran war began on February 28. It was 2.5 per cent when Trump was inaugurated in January 2025. The government issues its August PCE data on Wednesday.
美联储表示，消费者对当前就业市场的看法在9月份有所恶化，但整体仍处于积极范围内。受访者普遍认为他们的家庭收入将会增加，不过增幅不会像前几个月那么显著。
Consumers’ views of the current labour market also worsened in September, but remained in positive territory, the board said. Respondents broadly said they expected their household incomes to rise, but not as much as in previous months.
8月份，美国劳动力市场出现了复苏：雇主新增了16.2万个就业岗位，结束了此前招聘活动疲软的态势。失业率仍维持在4.1%的较低水平，不过其中一部分原因可能是许多人在前几个月已经放弃了寻找工作的努力。
The US labour market bounced back in August as employers added a surprising 162,000 jobs, ending a summer of lacklustre hiring. The unemployment rate remained at a low 4.1 per cent, but some of that can be attributed to significant numbers of people giving up on their search for employment in previous months.
今年以来，通胀一直是企业和家庭讨论的热门话题；而微弱的工资增长使得物价上涨对许多人来说更加难以承受。上个月，美国平均每小时工资的同比涨幅仅为3.1%，这是自2021年5月以来最弱的同比涨幅。美国政府将于周五公布9月份的就业报告。（来源：美联社）
Inflation has dominated conversations this year in business and households, and meagre pay rises have made rising prices more painful for many. Average hourly wages rose 3.1 per cent last month from a year earlier, the weakest year-over-year increase since May 2021. The government issues its September jobs report on Friday. By Associated Press