For Economy, Holidays Fall Short On Hope

Consumer Confidence Hits All-Time Low In December; Housing Prices Plummet For October

(CBS/AP)  At least one gift was sorely lacking during the holiday season - optimism about the economy.

Consumer confidence hit an all-time low in December, dropping unexpectedly in the face of layoffs and deteriorating markets for housing, stocks and other investments.

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index fell to 38 in December from a revised 44.7 in November. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected the index to rise incrementally to 45.

The separate Present Situation index, which measures how respondents feel about business conditions and employment prospects, fell to 29.4 in December from 42.3 in November. It is now close to levels last seen after the 1990 to 1991 recession.

The dismal job market appears to have outweighed declining gas prices in consumers' minds. Those saying jobs are "hard to get" rose to 42 percent in December from 37.1 percent in November, while those claiming jobs are "plentiful" decreased to 6.2 percent from 8.7 percent.

The proportion of consumers anticipating an increase in their incomes decreased to 12.7 percent in December from 13.1 percent in November.

Those claiming business conditions are "bad" increased to 46.0 percent in December from 40.6 percent in November, while those saying business conditions are "good" declined to 7.7 percent from 10.1 percent.

The survey is based on a representative sample of 5,000 U.S. households. The cutoff date for December's preliminary results was Dec. 22.

Meanwhile, a report shows October housing prices fell at a record rate from the same month last year.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city housing index released Tuesday fell by a record 18 percent from October last year, the largest drop since its inception in 2000. The 10-city index tumbled 19.1 percent, its biggest decline in its 21-year history.

Both indices have recorded year-over-year declines for 22 straight months. Prices are at levels not seen since March 2004.

Prices in the 20-city index have plummeted more than 23.4 percent from their peak in July 2006. The 10-city index has fallen 25 percent since its peak in June 2006.

None of the 20 cities saw annual price gains in October - for the seventh consecutive month.

[mytoosense]

Does anyone else find CBS''''''''s use of our flag in this way offensive? To me it is disrespectful. Then again, this is "journalism." What was I expecting?

Posted by Meg001 at 12:36 PM : Dec 30, 2008

What is disrespectful is the fact that most American Flags are produced in China.

[centerfall94]

Does anyone else find CBS''''s use of our flag in this way offensive? To me it is disrespectful. Then again, this is "journalism." What was I expecting?

Posted by Meg001 at 12:36 PM : Dec 30, 2008

Oh get a grip you FREAK.

What''s "disrespectful" is the neocons abuse of our country over the past eight years that have brought us to this catastrophe. Keep your flag hugging political correctness to yourself, we have bigger fish to fry.

[whitemale08]

How ''bout that you Keynesian lovers?

You threw in everything that the Bank of England governor Maynard Keynes said and look...

Another Bush/Hannity/Limbaugh-Depression.

After tax cuts for the rich, Iraqi War supplementals, Wall Street bail out, and Cerebrus Capital LLC poses as a auto company to loot billions,

consumer/borrowers still are not confident enough to perpetuate their serfdom to the banks.

What do you expect?

[starleo146]

I agree the CEO''s are overpaid and the golden parachutes are outrageous, but the congress have more time off and the economy is in the pits and if they think they are doing a good job they deserve to be fired.no way do they deserve a raise more like a cut in pay in my estimation

[starleo146]

Man you have really hit it on the nose, after what I heard today I am more convinced, the Congress has voted themselves a $4700.00 dollar raise, do you think they felt like getting a bailout as well? $174000.00 People being laid, off business closing right, and left, and people losing there homes, and they want a raise.

Posted by starleo14672 at 09:51 PM : Dec 30, 2008

There excuse for not voting against the raise was the military and social security all got a raise. Does this make you feel secure the way they think or what? Each representative now makes 174000.00 and the benefits they get far outweigh what pittance we will ever get. 63 dollars is a far cry from 4700 don''t you think?

[starleo146]

You can bet those CEO''''s that got millions had a real nice Christmas......nice return for their bribery...oops...lobby dollar investments. Both parties received lobby dollars from all the people that got bailouts.....Quite evident where the loyalty of both parties lie...and it''''s not to the people that voted them in....So why do people keep supporting them? They are ALL FAILURES.

Posted by tincup356 at 09:13 PM : Dec 30, 2008
+ report abuse

Man you have really hit it on the nose, after what I heard today I am more convinced, the Congress has voted themselves a $4700.00 dollar raise, do you think they felt like getting a bailout as well? $174000.00 People being laid, off business closing right, and left, and people losing there homes, and they want a raise.

[stevex47]

Nice job ruining the US boosh lovers.

[tincup356]

You can bet those CEO''s that got millions had a real nice Christmas......nice return for their bribery...oops...lobby dollar investments. Both parties received lobby dollars from all the people that got bailouts.....Quite evident where the loyalty of both parties lie...and it''s not to the people that voted them in....So why do people keep supporting them? They are ALL FAILURES.

[fahren451]

Naive??? I know that journalism is far from ethical. A socialist regime controls the media network.

Posted by mcv57 at 07:25 PM : Dec 30, 2008

I tend to not think of corporations as socialist. What makes you think they are?

[samthetvcat]

---"And then you say sales dropped unexpectedly."---
Posted by voxpopulus

I think it''s a coping mechanism to hold out hope beyond reality. It''s not like I don''t feel as anxious and uncertain as everybody else, but unless you acknowledge that it exists so you can factor it into your analysis, it can really throw a person off the their mark.

There''s an example of the more toxic brand of delusion at play over at Huffington Post in the business section - a blogger just keeps lashing out calling somebody an idiot, with very little discussion of the issues . . . I guess it''s like an inability to cope with anxiety, but it''s kind of scary to see people lose it in that way. You don''t suppose that guy would read the CBS comments, do you - I''d be horrified if he did and realized I was talking about him :(

[ontheleft]

Trickle down works, we are seeing the results of it. Now what we should do is expand the Bush tax cuts and eliminate all taxes on the rich. Then the money will trickle down even more an we''ll all be rich. What a brilliant plan!

[schoolmarm22]

Are they really surprised that American consumers aren''t spending their money on frivolous items? With unemployment on the rise and decent jobs getting harder to find, people are trying to keep their bills paid, a roof over their heads, and food for their families. This recession is going to last for a while, and it seems foolish for the economists to believe that Americans should spend their last dollars to bolster the economic well-being of stores and malls. As a consumer, I''m watching every cent I spend in an effort to keep my children fed, clothed, and sheltered and I will continue to do so to ensure my family''s well-being.

[mcv57]

The American companies will always be there.

Posted by vanfer

Just like The Great Depression??? Tell me how?

[mcv57]

Posted by voxpopulus

Naive??? I know that journalism is far from ethical. A socialist regime controls the media network.

[mcv57]

Stimulus is a soft political word for Devaluing the dollar. Obama''''s plan stinks cause he has to barrow the money rise taxes or Print it either way you lose. This is a trap and you all need to research this.
http://www.europac.net/

Posted by WarDogLRS

I agree, Obama needs to rethink the socialist plan. A black president to host a socialist regime is enought to tear this nation apart. The white trash, skin heads, nazis hell angels will have him dead before he can finish his term.

[voxpopulus]

mcv57, how naive about the state and function of US mainstream journalism you are.

[vanfer-2009]

Buy like crazy. Everything, is cheap!Two years or less, we''ll have a bull market and you''ll be WAAAY AHEAD. The American companies will always be there.

[mcv57]

your writer or sub-editor in a coma the whole time you''''ve been predicting poor sales?

Posted by voxpopulus

Hey, it makes-up for the lack of transparency from the government and corporate exec.? When the pink-slips comes, the journalist can focus on corruption, corruption, and more corruption. After that, we will be lucky to have a financial system. What? The executives going to pay themselves for proping-up a phony corporation. Now, that is a new angle to work on for unemployed journalist.

[voxpopulus]

Sometimes I don''t get the way some journalists work. And I am a journalist. You spent months before Christmas saying people weren''t going to spend. You spent all Christmas week saying people weren''t spending. Almost every day since then, you''ve said people didn''t spend. And then you say sales dropped unexpectedly. Apart from anything else, don''t you get bored running the same story every day with different words? I know I try to avoid it. And was your writer or sub-editor in a coma the whole time you''ve been predicting poor sales?

[tincup356]

Supporters of Both parties should be ashamed of yourselves...Bush screamed we need to come to the rescue of the home foreclosures in a hurry.....they got the bailout then said screw the foreclosures....And Congress went right along....Both parties....and now where is the money?...It went right to the very people that made bad loans in the first place,,,,which just happen to be some of the same people that have paid millions in lobby dollars to BOTH parties.....No matter how you slice it or dice it.....Congress and the White house are committing treason.....And you party line idiots still give your party full support.....Infukincredible.