US consumer confidence jumps, European confidence steady

US economic data on Tuesday were positive. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index rose to 70.3 in September, the highest level in seven months, from 61.3 in August. Home prices have also risen, with the S&P/Case-Shiller composite 20 index rising 1.2 percent in July from a year earlier, the biggest 12-month increase since August 2010, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s home-price index rising 0.2 percent in July.

And in the supposedly-weak manufacturing sector, the Richmond Fed's manufacturing index rose to 4 in September from -9 in August, the third consecutive regional survey to show an improvement.

European data on Tuesday were also relatively good. An indicator of French industrial confidence was unchanged at 90 in September while German consumer confidence is also expected to hold steady in October. The Italian consumer confidence index rose to 86.2 in September from a revised 86.1 in August.