Gas, grocery prices make LI consumers pessimistic about future

Long Island consumers are pessimistic about their immediate financial future due to inflation, particularly the higher cost of gasoline and groceries, according to a poll released on Thursday.

The Siena College Research Institute reported its Index of Consumer Sentiment was 59.9 points last month for Nassau and Suffolk counties.

That's below the index's break-even mark of 76 points, meaning the number of residents who are pessimistic about their financial outlook is larger than the number who are optimistic, according to Siena pollster Don Levy.

The Island's latest sentiment reading also is below that for New York City and the suburbs north and east, which was 73.1 points.

“Inflation plus war equals uncertainty,” Levy said on Thursday, referring to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “Gas prices and their impact is taking our collective breath away.”

Retailers and economists closely follow confidence indexes because they indicate consumers’ willingness to open their wallets. Consumer spending accounts for about 70% of economic activity on Long Island and in the state and nation.

The latest sentiment reading is derived from Siena’s March 14-17 survey of 104 Island residents.

As for the cost of gasoline, 71% of the people in Nassau and Suffolk said pump prices were either a very serious or somewhat serious problem. That compares with 62% of residents in the metropolitan area.

On grocery prices, 72% of Long Islanders said they were either a very serious or somewhat serious problem. That compares with 71% in the metro area.

The poll’s margin of error is plus or minus 9.6 percentage points for the Long Island sample and 3.7 points overall. The survey consists of 801 respondents from across New York State.

By James T. Madore

james.madore@newsday.comJamesTMadore

James T. Madore writes about Long Island business news including the economy, development, and the relationship between government and business. He previously served as Albany bureau chief.