Consumer confidence hits a near 2-year low

NEW YORK - Worries about jobs and the overall economy flared in September, driving a key barometer of consumer sentiment to its lowest level in nearly two years, a private research group said Tuesday. The New York-based Conference Board said its Consumer Confidence Index fell to 99.8, an almost 6-point drop from the revised 105.6 in August. The reading was below the 104.5 that analysts had expected. It marked its lowest level since a 98.3 reading in November 2005, when gas and oil prices soared after hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast. The Present Situation Index, which measures how shoppers feel now about the economy, declined to 121.7 from 130.1 in August. The Expectations Index, which measures shoppers' outlook over the next six months, declined to 85.2 from 89.2.