NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Consumer confidence lost ground last week, falling below average, amid concern about rising oil prices, a survey said Tuesday.

The ABC/Money magazine "consumer comfort" index fell to minus 12 for the week ended Oct. 3, 2004 from minus 9 the week before. The index's 19-year average is also minus 9. The survey began tracking how comfortable consumers are with the economy and spending in December 1985.

Rising oil prices may have played a role in its recent slide, the survey said.

The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline stood at $1.94 last week, according to the Department of Energy. The price has risen 9 cents in the last month, and it is the highest level since late June.

According to the ABC/Money survey, 34 percent of respondents -- two percentage points lower than the week of Sept. 26 -- expressed comfort with the economy in the latest week. The average peaked at 80 percent on Jan. 16, 2000 but bottomed out at 7 percent in late 1991 and early 1992.

When asked if it's a good time to buy things they want or need, 38 percent of those asked said "yes," down from 39 percent a week earlier. The highest reading in this category, 57 percent, was set on Jan. 16, 2000, and the lowest, 20 percent, in the fall of 1990.

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Opinions on personal finance stayed the same; 60 percent of those polled said their finances are good or excellent, down from 61 percent the week before. The best was 70 percent on Aug. 30, 1998, which was matched in January 2000. The worst was 42 percent on March 14, 1993.

The latest ABC/Money consumer comfort index was based on a random survey of 1,000 respondents nationwide in the week ended Oct. 3. The index measures typical Americans' confidence in three areas: the national economy, their own finances, and their willingness to spend money, according to the report.