NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
Consumer confidence rose again last week, recouping some of the losses it sustained over the past month amid easing gas prices and an improved jobs market, a survey said Tuesday.
The ABC News/Money magazine Consumer Comfort Index rose 4 points to -11 on its scale of +100 to -100 for the week ending June 27, 2004. Following a rare five-point increase in the previous week, the index has now gained 9 points in the past 2 weeks.
Several factors have given the consumer confidence index a lift. The Department of Energy reported a drop in pump prices for five straight weeks. An improving jobs market is another positive, according to the ABC/Money report.
In addition, the Commerce Department said Americans' incomes rose by a strong 0.6 percent in May for the second consecutive month.
Measured separately, 40 percent of Americans rated the nation's economy as excellent or good, up from 36 percent in the previous week. Consumer confidence peaked at 80 percent on Jan. 16, 2000, but bottomed out at 7 percent in late 1991 and early 1992.
And 40 percent said it's an excellent or good time to buy things they want or need, up from 37 percent a week earlier. The highest level of confidence in this category, 57 percent, was set on Jan. 16, 2000, and the worst, 20 percent, in the fall of 1990.
But opinions on personal finance fell one percentage point, as 54 percent of those polled said their finances are good or excellent, down from 55 percent the week prior. The best was 70 percent on Aug. 30, 1998 and matched in January 2000. The worst was 42 percent on March 14, 1993.
The ABC News/Money magazine Consumer Comfort Index represents a rolling average based on telephone interviews with a random sample of about 1,000 adults nationwide each month. This week's results are based on 1,000 interviews in the four weeks ended June 27, 2004, and have an error margin of plus or minus three percentage points.
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