Consumer Sentiment Plummets

Ann Arbor, MI, April 11, 2008—Consumer sentiment fell to a 16-year low this month, according to the Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment.

The index fell to to a score of 63.2, the lowest level since March 1982 when the index stood at 62.2. Economists had been expecting a deterioration to 69.0.

The current conditions index fell from 84.2 in March to 78.4 in April while the economic outlook index fell from 60.1 to 53.4.

The one-year inflation expectation jumped to 4.8 percent after rising to 4.3 percent in March.