NEW YORK, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- U.S. consumer confidence index decreased marginally in December as Americans remained confident in the current state of the economy, but expressed less optimism about the short-term outlook, New York-based The Conference Board reported Tuesday.
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index registered 126.5 in December, down from 126.8 in November.
The Present Situation Index, which is based on consumers' assessment of current business and labor market conditions, increased from 166.6 to 170.0, showed the report.
However, the Expectations Index, which is based on consumers' short-term outlook for income, business and labor market conditions, dropped from 100.3 last month to 97.4 this month.
"While consumers' assessment of current conditions improved, their expectations declined, driven primarily by a softening in their short-term outlook regarding jobs and financial prospects," Lynn Franco, director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board, said in a statement.
"While the economy hasn't shown signs of further weakening, there is little to suggest that growth, and in particular consumer spending, will gain momentum in early 2020," Franco added.
