The consumer confidence index grew to 98.1 in January from a revised 96.3 last month, The Conference Board reported Tuesday.
The December index was originally reported as 96.5.
Economists polled by Thomson Reuters predicted a 96.5 reading for the index.
The present situation index held at 116.4 from a revised 116.4, first reported as 115.3, while the expectations index rose to 85.9 from a revised 83.0, first reported as 83.9.
"Consumer confidence improved slightly in January, following an increase in December," said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board's economic indicators. "Consumers' assessment of current conditions held steady, while their expectations for the next six months improved moderately. For now, consumers do not foresee the volatility in financial markets as having a negative impact on the economy."
Business conditions were called "good" by 27.2% of respondents in January, up from 27.1% in December. Those saying conditions are "bad" dipped to 18.5% from 18.9%.
The percentage of consumers expecting a pickup in business conditions in the next half year grew to 16.2% from 14.5%, while 10.3% said they expect conditions to worsen, down from 10.8% in the prior month.
On the jobs front, those who believe jobs are "plentiful" decreased to 22.8% in January from 24.2% in December, while the number saying jobs are "hard to get" slid to 23.4% from 24.5%. The respondents who see fewer jobs becoming available in a half year, declined to 16.5% from 16.8%. Those expecting more jobs to become available gained to 13.2% from 12.4%, The Conference Board reported.
The consumer confidence survey is based on a probability design random sample by the Nielsen Company.
