Consumer confidence near record low: report

 

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Confidence of American consumers continued to plummet as a result of weakening economic conditions and escalating gasoline prices, according to a weekly survey published on Tuesday.

The ABC News/Washington Post Consumer Comfort Index fell to -47 in the week ended May 11 from -46 the previous week, and is three points away from its all-time low of -50 hit in February 1992. The index ranges from -100 to +100.

The news outlets said 77 percent of Americans described the economy as getting worse, matching a 27-year high reached in October and November 1990.

"The cause seems clear," they said. "On top of the credit and housing crises and generally weakening economic conditions, retail gasoline prices climbed 11 cents in the past week to another record, $3.72 per gallon. The Energy Department increased its oil and gas price estimates for the year."

Two of the consumer confidence index's three components fell. Positive views of personal finances shed one percentage point to 46 percent and views on the national economy also fell one percentage point, to 13 percent.

Views on the buying climate were unchanged at 20 percent.

Confidence measures are generally viewed as a barometer of consumer spending, which accounts for two-thirds of the U.S. economy. However, economists note that consumers do not always act in accordance with their statements to surveys.

The ABC/Washington Post consumer confidence survey was based on a sample of about 1,000 interviews conducted in the four weeks to May 11 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Dan Grebler)