NEW YORK — Americans felt better about the economy in August, as a widely watched barometer of sentiment posted the biggest boost in two years amid falling gas prices. Meanwhile, two reports suggested that the worst may be over for the slumping housing market.
The Conference Board, a private research group, said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index rose to 56.9, up from a revised 51.9 in July. That’s the largest gain since August 2006, and exceeded the 53 expected by economists surveyed by Thomson/IFR.
It’s also the second month in a row that sentiment improved, after a six-month slide since January — but it remains about half what it was a year ago.
The latest reports on housing, meanwhile, showed that the severity of the slump may be lessening. The Standard &Poor’s/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index showed home prices dropping a record 15.4 percent during the second quarter. However, the rate of single-family home price declines slowed from May to June, a possible silver lining.
Sales of new homes also posted an unexpected increase in July as heavily discounted properties lured cautious house hunters into ownership, the Commerce Department reported.
Falling gas prices in recent weeks helped boost consumers’ gloomy mood, Franco said. A national survey shows gas prices have dropped 15 cents a gallon in the last two weeks, according to the Lundberg Survey of 7,000 gas stations nationwide, released Sunday.
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