NEW YORK " A private research group says Americans' confidence in the economy unexpectedly improved in September.
The reading still hovers near an historic 16-year low and does not fully reflect the financial meltdown that has rocked both Wall Street and Main Street in recent days, however.
The Conference Board said Tuesday its Consumer Confidence Index is at 59.8, up from a revised 58.5 in August. Economists surveyed by Thomson/IFR expected a reading of 55.5. The level remains about half of what it was a year ago and near the lowest since the index registered 54.6 in October 1992 when the economy was coming out of a recession.