Consumer confidence falls
Closely watched measure of consumer sentiment misses Wall Street forecasts for a gain.
December 30, 2003: 10:26 AM EST
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Consumer confidence fell in December, a research group said Tuesday, missing Wall Street forecasts for a slight gain.
The Conference Board, a business research group based in New York, said its closely watched index of consumer confidence fell to 91.3 from a revised 92.5 in November.
Economists, on average, expected the confidence index, based on a survey of 5,000 households, to rise to 91.8 from the originally reported 91.7, according to Briefing.com.
The survey's "expectations" index, measuring consumers' expectations for the future, rose to 102.9 from 100.1, but the "present situation" index fell to 73.9 from 81.
Separately, the National Association of Realtors said sales of previously owned homes, the biggest share of the housing market, shrank in November more than analysts had expected, and Chicago's National Association of Purchasing Managers said its closely watched index of regional manufacturing activity was lower than expected in December.
The trifecta of worse-than-expected economic news helped sink U.S. stock prices in early trading. Treasury bond prices erased earlier losses.
Confidence is watched closely by policy makers and analysts, since consumer spending fuels more than two-thirds of the nation's economy.
Hopes for a better job market pushed confidence higher in November, but those hopes apparently dimmed a bit in December. The percentage of survey respondents saying jobs are "hard to get" rose to 32.6 percent, the highest level since October, from 29.6 percent in November, the Conference Board said. |
