Corporate chief executives' confidence fell in the third quarter, The Conference Board reported today. Its measure of CEO confidence fell to 44 points in the third quarter from 45 in the second; a reading of more than 50 points reflects more positive than negative responses. The survey includes about 100 business leaders across several industries.

"Despite the rather bleak assessment of current conditions, CEOs are not as pessimistic in their short-term outlook," said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board consumer research center.

Fourteen percent said current economic conditions had improved, compared with 23% last quarter. However, 20% said they believe economic conditions will improve in the next six months, compared with 17% in the last quarter.