US consumer confidence 'hits new low'
31-12-2008
Consumer confidence in the United States has plunged to a historic low this month amid the deepening recession, according to a private research firm, Conference Board. The company, which has been measuring consumer confidence since 1967, said the index tumbled to 38.0 in December from 44.7 in November, owing to deteriorating economic conditions in the fourth quarter. Consumers' outlook for the first half of 2009 remains "quite dismal", and they see "only a modest recovery" in the second half of the year, said Lynn Franco, research director at the Conference Board.
