The U.S. Conference Board reported today that chief executives’ confidence fell to its lowest level in four years in its latest survey.

The Conference Board’s Measure of CEO Confidence, which had fallen to 55 in the second quarter of 2005, slid to 50 in the third quarter (a reading of more than 50 points reflects more positive than negative responses). This is the lowest reading in nearly four years when the Measure registered 40 in the final quarter of 2001. The survey includes about 100 CEOs in a wide range of industries. (Results were received both before and after Hurricane Katrina hit).

“CEOs’ confidence was already waning in the face of rising energy costs, and Hurricane Katrina has further exacerbated this situation,” said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center, in a release. “Confidence has fallen to a four-year low and will likely remain subdued for the rest of 2005.”

CEOs’ assessment of current conditions continued to deteriorate, the Conference Board noted. Now, close to 32% of CEOs say current economic conditions are worse, up from about 19% in the second quarter. In assessing their own industries, business leaders’ assessment remained virtually unchanged. Slightly more than 29% say conditions are worse, compared to 30% last quarter.

CEOs are noticeably less optimistic about the short-term outlook than they were earlier this year. Now, 32% expect economic conditions to worsen in the next six months, up from 19% last quarter. Expectations for their own industries were also less positive, with nearly 38% anticipating a deterioration, compared to 25% last quarter.

The Conference Board also found that 34% report increases in their companies’ capital spending plans since January of this year, while only 12% have scaled back plans. This is a moderate change from the 2004 survey, when 33% had increased their capital spending plans and 6% had made cuts.