It appears that with the recent financial woes in the nation and on Wall Street, and the Dow falling below 10,000 for the first time since 2004 in the first hour on Monday, many consumers are holding back on their spending.

Even before the latest market tumble, reports indicated that August had been the weakest for consumer spending in six months. The Commerce Department reported that consumer spending was unchanged in August -- not a positive sign in an economy that needs to be jumpstarted.

The New York times reports that cutbacks seem to be across the board, from the automobile industry to fashion to restaurants. "Less than a month ago, Nigel Gault, chief domestic economist at Global Insight, a forecasting service, predicted that domestic economic output would rise 1.2 percent in the third quarter." This number is currently closer to zero percent.

Published: October 7, 2008

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