Consumer Confidence Highest Since 2002

Americans' optimism in the economy rebounded in March, sending a widely followed barometer of consumer sentiment to a near four-year high, a private research group said Tuesday.

The Conference Board said that its consumer index shot up 4.5 points to 107.2, the highest level since May 2002, when the reading was 110.3. Analysts had expected a reading of 102.

The latest measure was up from a revised 102.7 in February, which saw confidence fall 4.1 points from the previous month after enjoying a rebound that began in November following the Gulf Coast hurricanes.

"The improvement in consumers' assessment of present-day conditions is yet another sign that the economy gained steam in early 2006," Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said in a statement. "Consumer expectations, while improved, remain subdued and still suggest a cooling in activity in the latter half of this year."

The component of the consumer confidence index that assesses views of current economic conditions rose to 133.3 from 130.3. Another component, which measures consumers' outlook over the next six months, improved to 89.9 from 84.2 in February.

The improved outlook is an encouraging sign for retailers, whose sales of spring fashions have been uneven amid cool temperatures. Economists closely track consumer confidence because consumer spending accounts for two thirds of all U.S. economic activity.