After jumping in August, ratings of economic conditions remain at or near their all-time highs: Seventy-seven percent of Americans say the economy is in good shape, 69 percent say their personal finances are good and 53 percent call it a good time to buy things.

Consumer Confidence Since December 1985
	Today	Highest	Lowest	Average
National Economy	77%	80%	7%	40%
Personal Finances	69	70	42	57
Buying Climate	53	57	20	38

     INDEX — The ABCNEWS/Money magazine Consumer Comfort Index, based on ratings of the buying climate, personal finances and the national economy, stands at +33 on its scale of +100 to -100, down 1 point from last week. The index peaked at +38 on Jan. 16, slipped in the spring and early summer, then rebounded.
     The index has averaged +29 this year, a point above its record 1999 average. Its lifetime average, depressed by recession in the early 1990s, is -10.
    

ABCNEWS/Money Index
Today	+33
Last Week	+34
Jan. 16, 2000	+38 (Record high)
2000 average	+29
1999 average	+28 (Best full year)
1992 average	-44 (Worst full year)
Feb. 9, 1992	-50 (Record low)
Average since 12/85	-10

A Closer Look
As usual, confidence is higher among better-off Americans: The index is +68 in higher-income households and -17 in the lowest, +51 among college graduates but -15 among high-school dropouts, +35 among whites but +13 among blacks and +45 among men but +23 among women.
     Here’s a closer look at the three components of the ABC/Money index:
     NATIONAL ECONOMY — The poll asks: Would you describe the state of the nation’s economy these days as excellent, good, not so good or poor? Seventy-seven percent of Americans rate the nation’s economy as excellent or good, up 2 points from last week. The best was 80 percent Jan. 16. The worst was 7 percent in late 1991 and early 1992.
     PERSONAL FINANCES — The poll asks: Would you describe the state of your own personal finances these days as excellent, good, not so good or poor? Seventy percent rate their own finances as excellent or good. That level was first hit on Aug. 30, 1998, and last matched in January. The worst was 42 percent on March 14, 1993..
     BUYING CLIMATE — The poll asks: Considering the cost of things today and your own personal finances, would you say now is an excellent time, a good time, a not so good time or a poor time to buy the things you want and need? Fifty-three percent say it is an excellent or good time to buy, up 1 point from last week. The best, 57 percent, was achieved on Jan. 16. The worst was 20 percent in fall 1990.

Methodology
The ABCNEWS/Money magazine Consumer Comfort Index represents a rolling average based on telephone interviews with about 1,000 adults nationwide each month. This week’s results are based on 1,035 interviews in the week ending Sept. 10 and have an error margin of plus or minus 3 percentage points. Field work was done by ICR-International Communications Research of Media, Pa.
     The ABC/Money index is derived as follows: The negative response to each index question is subtracted from the positive response to that question. The three resulting numbers are then added and divided by 3. The index can range from +100 (everyone positive on all three measures) to -100 (all negative on all three measures). The survey began in December 1985.