- Millions Could Have to Repay Part of Obama's Tax Credit
- What Recovery? Many Homeowners Still Underwater
- Gold Is in a 'Bubble' And Will Keep Going Higher: Gartman
- How Will Retail Fare Over Holidays? Signals Are Mixed
- Madoff Auction: $4,750 for a Decoy Duck?
- Slideshow: Madoff's Luxury Boats Go Up for Auction
- How Much Do You Know About Green?
- Solar Energy Emerges From a Dark Period
- Drillers Seek Scotch Lost in Antarctica in 1909
- Mixed Signals Come From Retail Sector as Holidays Draw Near
- Will the S&P 500 Close Above 1100?
- What Were The Northwest Pilots Really Doing?
- Your Jobless Recovery Game Plan
- S&P to Hit 1,175 in the Short Term: Strategist
- Busch: US Health Care Bill a Concern for the Chinese
- Underwater Mortgages Could Sink Even Deeper
- My Market and Fed Outlook Now: BlackRock's Doll
- Farrell: The Market is Still Seeking Reassurance
MOST SHARED
- BlackRock: Central Banks To Be Net Buyers of Gold
- Millions May Have to Repay Part of Obama Tax Credit
- Cisco Ups Tandberg Bid, Claims Over 40% Backing
- Gold Is in a 'Bubble' And Will Keep Going Higher: Gartman
- Underwater Mortgages Could Sink Even Deeper
- Weak US Housing Market Drags on Lowe's Profit
- Devon to Sell its Gulf, International Assets
- Madoff Auction: $4,750 for a Decoy Duck?
- Several Credit Card Companies See Default Rate Fall
Text Size 
U.S. consumer confidence rose slightly in December with a marginal improvement in the outlook for business conditions, employment and inflation, according to a private report on Thursday.
The Conference Board said its index of consumer sentiment rose to 88.6 in December from a revised 87.8 in November. The median forecast of economists polled by Reuters was for a reading of 86.5.
The present situation index fell to 108.3 in December, its lowest since October 2005, from a revised 115.7 in November.
The expectations index rose to 75.5 in December from a revised 69.1.
Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board's consumer research center, noted that "while consumers are less negative about the near-term future, they remain far from optimistic. In fact, in assessing the current job market, pessimists now outnumber optimists."
The Conference Board said those saying jobs are "hard to get" rose to 23.5 percent from 21.4 percent, while those saying jobs are "plentiful" declined to 22.7 percent in December from 23.3 percent in November.
"The jobs hard to get, which is closely watched, jumped two points -- I wouldn't necessary say that is out of the recent range, but that certainly bears watching," said Cary Leahey, senior managing director at Decision Economics in New York.
U.S. Treasury debt prices held steady at higher levels, while stocks slightly pared losses after the release of the confidence data.
Print
Email
- Where, what, how.
- CNBC's Jim Goldman asks: Has the sun begun to set on Twitter? Data suggests its best days are over.
- De Loach Vineyards is selling its pinot noir the old fashioned way, helping to cut energy and transportation costs.
- Why are the Chinese concerned about the progress of U.S. health care legislation?
- The president and founder of Genesis Today wants to improve America’s health, and thinks Wal-Mart can help.
- If a terrible driver on your morning commute has you feeling like you want to scream, check this out.
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes