Consumer confidence cools in January

U.S. consumer confidence dipped for the second consecutive month in January, a business research group said Tuesday.

The Conference Board reported that its consumer confidence index retreated this month to 104.1, from 109.5 in December. That is worse than economist projections for a reading of 105.8.

December’s reading was revised up by 4.8 points but still represented a decline from November.

The consumer confidence index measures both Americans’ assessment of current economic conditions and their outlook for the next six months.

Consumers appeared increasingly confident heading into the end of 2024 and spending during the holiday season was resolute. In the face of higher borrowing costs, retail sales rose 0.4% in December and stores generally reported healthy sales during the winter holiday shopping season.

The board said that consumers’ view of current conditions tumbled 9.7 points to a reading of 134.3 in January and views on current labor market conditions fell for the first time since September.

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