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RAPAPORT... The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index® fell to 39.8 points in October, the lowest level since March 2009. The index was about 10 points lower than one year ago. The Present Situation Index, however, was three points higher than October 2010 at 26.3 points. The Expectations Index plummeted 29 percent year on year to 48.7 points.
Lynn Franco, the director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center, explained that consumer confidence was now firmly back to levels during the Great Recession. ''Consumer expectations, which had improved in September, gave back all of the gain and then some, as concerns about business conditions, the labor market and income prospects increased. Consumers' assessment of present-day conditions did not fare any better. The Present Situation Index posted its sixth consecutive monthly decline, as pessimism about the current economic environment continues to grow."
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