Consumer Confidence Edges Up in October

New York, NY, Oct. 26, 2010 -- U.S. consumer confidence rose to 50.2 in October, though it is still near historically low levels, the Conference Board reported Tuesday.

Economists had expected a reading of 50.

"Consumers' assessment of the current state of the economy is relatively unchanged, primarily because labor market conditions have yet to significantly improve," said Lynn Franco, director of Conference Board's consumer research center, in a press release.

Confidence for September was revised to 48.6, from a prior estimate of 48.5. A barometer on consumers' expectations rose to 67.8 in October from 65.5 in September, while consumers' assessment of current conditions rose to 23.9 from 23.3.