American consumers are gloomier about the economy than at any point since just before the U.S. invasion of Iraq, as slumping housing prices and soaring fuel costs depress consumer confidence to its lowest level in five years.
The Conference Board, a business-backed research group, said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index plunged to 64.5 in March from a revised 76.4 in February. The March reading was the worst reading since the gauge registered 61.4 in March 2003, just ahead of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
![[Icon: Overcast]](http://icons.wunderground.com/graphics/conds/2005/cloudy.gif){kind=icon}
![[Icon: Partly Cloudy]](http://icons.wunderground.com/graphics/conds/2005/partlycloudy.gif){kind=icon}
Del.icio.us
Digg
Google
Newsvine
