NEW YORK - The consumer confidence index dropped to 52.5 in December from an upwardly revised 54.3 last month, The Conference Board reported this morning.
The November index was originally reported as 54.1.
Economists polled by Thomson Reuters predicted the index would be 56.0.
The present situation index dipped to 23.5 from an upwardly revised 25.4, originally reported as 24.0, while the expectations index decreased to 71.9 from a downwardly revised 73.6 last month, originally reported as 74.2.
“Despite this month’s modest decline, consumer confidence is no worse off today than it was a year ago,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board's Consumer Research Center. “Consumers’ assessment of the current state of the economy and labor market remains tepid, and their outlook remains cautious. Thus, all signs continue to suggest that the economic expansion will continue well into 2011, but that the pace of growth will remain moderate.”
Business conditions were called “good” by 7.5% of respondents in December, a decrease from 8.5% the prior month. Those saying conditions are “bad” fell to 41.2% from 42.9%.
The percentage of consumers expecting a pickup in business conditions in the next half year grew to 16.6% from 16.4%, while 12.1% said they expect conditions to worsen, down from 12.4% the prior month.
On the jobs front, those who believe jobs are “plentiful” slipped to 3.9% in December from 4.3% in November, while the number saying jobs are “hard to get” increased to 46.8% this survey from 46.3%. The respondents who see more jobs becoming available in a half year, fell to 14.3% from 15.1%. Those expecting fewer jobs to become available grew to 19.5% from 19.1%, The Conference Board reported.
Income expectations were mixed, with 9.9% of consumers anticipating an increase in their income in the next six months, off from the prior month's 11.1%, while 16.9% expect their income to decrease, down from 17.2% in the prior month’s survey.
The number of consumers who expected to buy a home in the next six months increased to 1.8% from 1.7%, while the number of respondents planning to buy a car decreased to 4.5% from 5.6%. Fewer consumers than last month said they plan to buy a major appliance in the next six months (25.0% vs. 25.2%).
Fewer respondents than last month (36.7% vs. 39.3%) expect to take a vacation in the next six months, but more said they would stay in the U.S. rather than leave the country. Cars rather than airplanes were the preferred mode of travel, by a 18.8%-14.3% margin.
The consumer confidence survey is based on a representative sample of 5,000 U.S. households for The Conference Board by TNS.
