Consumer confidence registered its sharpest one-week drop since the period immediately following the collapse of Lehman Brothers, according to recent Gallup polling, CNNMoney reported yesterday. About three times as many people now say the economy is in poor shape as those who say it's doing well. And consumers' outlook for the future is also deteriorating quickly. Those who think the economy is likely to get worse outnumber those who think it'll get better by a 69 to 27 percent margin. That's more than twice as large as the gap that existed in the days before the shutdown started Oct. 1. Wall Street and some inside the Washington beltway were cheered yesterday by reports that Republicans might agree to a brief extension of the debt ceiling. But simply prolonging the crisis might just keep consumers on edge and cause more economic damage. Economists worry that growing consumer anxiety over congressional gridlock will cause a sharp pull-back in spending.
