Gallup: Economic confidence inching back after sequester

People in the U.S. became more confident in the economy last week, Gallup found, inching back toward levels found before across-the-board spending cuts went into place this month.

Gallup said its economic confidence index grew to -14 last week – its highest reading since February, and up from -17 the week before.

The index's highest reading this year was -8 in early February, before the $85 billion in cuts known as sequestration started on March 1.

"The Dow Jones Industrial Average's 10 consecutive days of gains, the longest streak since 1996, likely contributed to the improvement last week in Americans' economic outlook," Gallup said.

Gallup said that most of the index's improvement came from the public's view of the economy's outlook, which has gained 13 points in the last three weeks. A majority of people (54 percent), however, still believe the economy is getting worse.

The polling company also found that people's take on current conditions, while still negative, is holding fairly steady.

Gallup also said its findings could be short lived, as Democrats and Republicans in Congress are working to avoid a government shutdown which could occur in just over a week. The polling company saw a decline in its confidence index after Washington failed to reach a deal to avoid sequestration.

The two parties are also debating vastly different budget visions for the future.

The economic index reached to below -50 following the extended debt ceiling debate that occurred in the summer of 2011.

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