While several industries have been hit very hard, the worst-case scenarios spun in late September have not materialized. In particular, households' views of the economy have remained relatively stable, all things considered. In fact, in one of the most recent readings, consumer confidence was not much lower than it had been in August.
While spending has surely been buttressed by some temporary factors such as aggressive discounting on motor vehicles and other retail goods, the effect of terrorism on consumer spending has not been as severe as most had feared in late September. To be sure, 2001 was a rough year for the economy--one of the roughest we have faced in a long time.