Report: Consumer confidence declines to nine-month low

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Thursday by Bloomberg said that consumer confidence fell last week to the lowest level in nine months as the cost of fuel pinched U.S. household budgets.



The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index declined to minus 49.4 in the period to May 15, the worst reading since August, from the prior week’s minus 46.9. A gauge of personal finances plunged to the weakest level since October 2009, and a monthly measure of economic expectations held at a seven-month low.



“A persistent pessimism has settled in among the American public, suggesting a rough second quarter for the U.S. consumer and economy,” said Joseph Brusuelas, a senior economist at Bloomberg LP in New York. “Stagnant wages and an elevated level of unemployment are the probable causes behind the bleak view of the state of the national economy and household finance.”



Another report on Thursday showed that fewer Americans than forecast filed applications for unemployment benefits last week, making it more likely that the April surge in applications was caused by temporary events rather than deterioration in the labor market.



Jobless claims declined by 29,000 to 409,000 in the week ended May 14, the fewest in a month, Labor Department figures showed. The median estimate of economists in a Bloomberg News survey called for a drop to 420,000.