According to CNBC, U.S. consumer sentiment plummeted in October to its lowest level since the end of last year as consumers grew more pessimistic over the government shutdown and its impact on the economy.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment fell to 73.2 in October from 77.5 in September and was the lowest final reading since December 2012.

"When asked to describe in their own words what they had heard about recent economic developments, the number of consumers that negatively mentioned the federal government in October was the highest in the more than half-century history of the surveys,'' survey director Richard Curtin said in a statement.