Americans expected only soft price inflation over the next few years, in part due to cheaper gasoline, according to a Federal Reserve survey last month that also found that purse strings were tightening across the nation. The New York Fed’s survey of consumer expectations, released on Monday, showed one-year ahead inflation expectations of 2.7 percent in April. The Fed is looking to raise interest rates later this year but wants to be sure that actual price inflation, which remains low, will rebound to its 2-percent target. The New York Fed survey found lower gas price expectations.