Reply #11: U.S. consumer confidence gauge falls (again) - report [View All]

[UpInArms]

http://today.reuters.com/investing/FinanceArticle.aspx?type=economicNews&storyID=URI:urn:newsml:reuters.com:20050920:MTFH40428_2005-09-20_21-17-31_N20415532:1

NEW YORK, Sept 20 (Reuters) - The confidence of American consumers fell again last week, weighed down by high gasoline prices and the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast, ABC News and the Washington Post said on Tuesday.

Their Consumer Comfort Index fell to -23 in the week ending Sept. 18 from -20 the prior week.

The index is a four-week moving average. Three of the four weeks in the most recent reading reflected the period following the hurricane.

All three components of the index fell in the latest week. The percentage of Americans with a positive view of the national economy fell to 30 percent from 32 percent.

The number of consumers with positive views of their personal finances dropped to 55 percent from 56 percent and the percentage of consumers who thought the buying climate was good was 31 percent, down from 32 percent a week ago.

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