Consumer Confidence Slips, but Home Prices Continue to Climb

WASHINGTON — Consumer confidence retreated slightly this month after reaching a 20-month high in September, but home prices continued to climb at a solid pace in August as more prospective buyers competed for fewer properties.

Consumer confidence slipped to 98.6 this month after rising to 103.5 in September, the Conference Board reported on Tuesday. The September figure was the highest since confidence stood at 103.8 in January 2015. The September confidence number was revised down from an initial estimate of 104.1, the highest in nine years.

The October figure reflected a drop in consumers’ assessment of business conditions and employment prospects.

Even with the small decline, consumer confidence was still at a level expected to support consumer spending and economic growth in coming months.

The October decline reflected decreases in consumers’ view about current conditions and their future expectations.

The number of consumers saying business conditions at present were “good” decreased moderately, to 26.2 percent from 27.7 percent, while those saying business conditions were “bad” rose to 17.7 percent from 15.8 percent.