Aug. 25 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. consumer confidence climbed more than forecast and national home prices increased for the first time in three years, signaling government efforts to right the world’s biggest economy are starting to pay off.
The Conference Board’s confidence index rose to 54.1 in August, the first gain since May, as consumers became less concerned about the outlook for jobs, the New York research group said today. The S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index advanced 2.9 percent in the second quarter from the previous three months, the first increase since 2006 and the biggest in almost four years.
The reports underscore why President Barack Obama gave Ben S. Bernanke a vote of confidence today by nominating the head of the Federal Reserve to a second term as chairman. Indications the housing crisis that triggered the worst recession since the 1930s is dissipating boosted stocks even as the White House downgraded growth and deficit forecasts.
“We’ve moved into the recovery phase,” said Conrad DeQuadros, senior economist at RDQ Economics in New York. “The talk about the recession being over, combined with better economic data, stabilization in housing and strength in equity markets is driving consumer confidence higher.”compared with 3.48 percent late yesterday.
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