Concern over stagnant wages and rising unemployment has pushed consumer sentiment in the United States to its lowest point in more than two years, Moneynews.com reported.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan’s final reading on the overall index of consumer sentiment was 63.7, down from 71.5 in June. That was the lowest reading since March 2009, and less than the median forecast of 64 among economists polled by Reuters.

Confidence in government economic policies fell, reaching a new low for the Obama administration, as anxieties about the U.S. debt crisis loomed, and Congress debated plans to raise the debt ceiling.

“While consumers may not fully understand the debate about the federal debt, they do understand the meaning of the oft-repeated warnings of ‘dire economic consequences,’ ‘ said Richard Curtin, director of the survey.

The survey’s gauge of consumer expectations slipped to 56 in July, compared with 64.8 the prior month, and was in line with economists’ predictions. Only one in 10 consumers expected to earn more money in the next year. Twice as many consumers said they heard more about job losses than job gains in July.

“The absence of positive long-term financial expectations has turned consumer resilience into consumer fragility at the first sign of adversity,” Curtin said.