With gas prices a possible culprit, Americans’ assessments of the buying climate and their personal finances declined again this week, pulling the Consumer Comfort Index to its largest two-week decline of the year.

At 53.3 on its 0-100 scale, the overall CCI has slid 3.6 points in two weeks (and 1.8 points this week alone) from its recent pandemic high, after a record-breaking advance in the first half of this year. The back-to-back drops are the index’s first consecutive significant losses since early May 2020, when it was still in the throes of its unprecedented pandemic plunge.

A likely contributor: Gasoline prices have risen to their highest since 2014, averaging $3.12 a gallon nationwide, up 23 cents in two months and 87 cents since the start of the year. Consumer sentiment historically has been vulnerable to steeply rising gas prices.

As it stands, the CCI is up 10.1 points since early January and 18.6 points from its pandemic low last May. Still, it remains 9.7 points short of its pre-pandemic level and 14.0 points off its 20-year peak in January 2020.

Ratings of the buying climate led the way, down a sharp 5.7 points in two weeks (and 2.2 points just this week) in its largest two-week drop since April 2020 to a three-month low, 45.0. The subindex still is up 16.2 points since May 2020, but 8.3 points off its pre-pandemic level.

The personal finances subindex is down 4.2 points in two weeks, including 2.4 points this week, in its largest two-week decline since October 2020. At 65.2, it’s at a three-month low. Previously fully recovered from its pandemic losses, the gauge is now 3.4 points off its pre-pandemic level.

At 49.7, the national economy subindex has fared somewhat better, sliding a slight 1.4 points in three weeks off its 14-month peak. It’s now 17.4 points off its pre-pandemic level and a broad 21.6 points off its 19-year high in January 2020.