The BBC reports that the Consumer Confidence Index is at a 16-year low. The index is currently at 57.2 - a fall from the 62.8 mark in April. The graph on the right from the Conference Board's release shows just how much the Index has fallen.
The Conference Board blamed the pessimism on the short-term outlook for the US economy as well as weakening business and job conditions.
The figures tell a similar story to the University of Michigan's Index, which hit a 28-year low in May.
"There is a fear the economy is in a recession or going into one and people may find their jobs in jeopardy," said David Coard from the Williams Capital Group in New York.
"When you talk to people on the street they seem to be really being squeezed at the pump and the supermarket while their income isn't keeping up."
Sadly, a turnaround in the short term is unlikely.
"Consumers' inflation expectations, fuelled by increasing prices at the pump, are now at an all-time high and are likely to rise further in the months ahead," said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center.
"As for the short-term outlook, the Expectations Index suggests little likelihood of a turnaround in the immediate months ahead."
Warren Buffett has also been gloomy on the economy lately saying that the recession will be "long and deep."
The BBC 