STATE CONSUMER CONFIDENCE UP, BUT LAGS NATION.(BUSINESS)

Byline: KENNETH AARON Business writer

Colonie Consumer confidence among New Yorkers rose to its highest level in nearly two years last month, but still lags far behind the nation as a whole.

While confidence edged upward during January in New York, according to a monthly survey released Thursday by the Siena Research Institute, it soared outside the state's borders -- further indication that the state is still on its heels from 9/11.

``It is clear that the rest of the nation is experiencing the economic recovery more than we are,'' said Douglas Lonnstrom, director of the institute, which is affiliated with Siena College in Loudonville.

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