Consumer confidence took a higher-than-expected bounce in August, fueling hopes that the worst of the recession is over.

The Conference Board said its index of consumer confidence nationwide jumped to 54.1, up from 47.4 in July.

The index now stands at roughly the same level as a year ago, before the brunt of the financial meltdown hit.

Still, the measure is well below the 90-plus reading that signals a healthy economy.

The last time consumer confidence was that high was in December 2007, when the index stood at 90.6.

"We are back on track now, indicating the worst is behind us," said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board's research center. Still, she said, "We have a ways to go before consumers are more confident and more willing to spend."

After hitting a record-low 25.3 in February, confidence rebounded in April and May, but fell back in June and July.

Analysts had been expecting little movement for August.

A separate index measuring consumers' expectations for the economy over the next six months shot up to 73.5 from July's 63.4, the highest level since December 2007.

"Consumers are much more optimistic that the next six months will bring an improving economy, not deterioration," said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh. He cautioned that the expectations index was very volatile.

"I've seen expectations get whipped around if there's a drop in the stock market," Mr. Hoffman said.

Brian Bethune, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight, attributed the surge in expectations to sustained gains in the stock market, positive news on housing and a modest rebound in the labor market.

The Conference Board survey showed that people were more upbeat about the job market in August. The percentage of consumers who said jobs were hard to get fell to 23.3 percent, from 26.1 percent, while a higher percentage of people said jobs were plentiful, 18.4 percent vs. 15.5 percent in July.

Mr. Bethune said the rebound in consumer confidence was good news, but that the sentiment wasn't likely to pick up strongly any time soon.

"Likely we will continue to see a jagged pattern with a very gradual upward trend over the next several months," he said. "We are not looking for the consumer sector to be much of a driver of the recovery beyond the third quarter."

The upturn in confidence and news that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was nominated to a second term buoyed the stock market, sending the Dow Jones industrials up 30.01, or 0.3 percent, to 9,539.29.