A closely watched measure of consumer confidence in the United States fell to its lowest level in five months in September, confounding economist predications for a rise. The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index fell to 88.2 from 89.3 in August, according to market sources quoted by . Economists, on average, expected a reading of 90 and the surprise drop brought the index to its lowest level since April, when it came in at 86. The university's "current conditions" index, measuring consumers' feelings about the current state of the economy, fell to 98.9 from 99.7 in August. The "expectations" index, looking into the future, fell to 81.3 from 82.5.
The report followed the Commerce Department's release of August retail-sales data. Sales rose in the month, but fell short of analysts' expectations. Wall Street pays close attention to consumer spending, which makes up more than two-thirds of the total economy. However, spending has been kept in check by the failure of the labour market to pick up. //www.fxcentre.com