New Delhi, Aug. 29 -- US consumer sentiment fell 6.3 per cent month-on-month to 51.7 in August, extending concerns over inflation and weakening economic prospects, according to the final reading from the University of Michigan's Surveys of Consumers. The index was also 11.2 per cent lower than a year earlier.

The decline was broad-based, with sentiment falling across all political groups and particularly sharply among Republicans, Surveys of Consumers Director Joanne Hsu said. Consumers who are generally less equipped to absorb higher living costs, including older people, lower- and middle-income households and those without stock holdings, also recorded stronger declines in sentiment.

The Current Economic Conditions Index fell 5.3 per ...