U.S. Consumer Confidence Falls To Lowest Since 1973 (Bob Willis)

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March 25 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. consumer confidence fell more than forecast in March as Americans' outlook on the economy dropped to the lowest level since Richard Nixon was in the White House.

The Conference Board's confidence index fell to 64.5, a five-year low, from a revised 76.4 in February, the New York- based research group said today. A separate report showed home prices in January fell by the most on record.

Declining stock and property values have unnerved Americans, heightening concern spending will falter. Without consumers, which account for more than two-thirds of the economy, the slowdown triggered by the collapse in housing and credit markets is likely to deepen in coming months.

``It's a discouraging environment,'' Pierre Ellis, a senior economist at Decision Economics Inc. in New York, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. ``We are almost certainly in a recession. The question is how deep and how long it will be.''

The Conference Board's gauge of expectations for the next six months slumped to 47.9, the lowest since December 1973, when the Watergate scandal rocked the Nixon administration and an embargo by a group of Arab oil exports was in effect, the report showed.