Consumer Confidence

The Conference Board's consumer confidence index fell again to 62.3 from 65.9 in March. The index was dragged down by the present situation index, which measures consumers' assessment of current economic conditions. Housing data also weighed on the economic outlook. Home prices from the largest urban areas around the country fell 13.6% in February from prices a year earlier. Given the slowing consumer and the rapidly declining housing prices, economists fear a "negative feedback loop," in which consumers, hurt by deteriorating house prices and poor consumer credit conditions, buy less and damage corporate profits.

Snapshot asks, will the struggling consumer keep the U.S. in a prolonged recession?