Consumer Confidence Index Rises in January

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he Conference Board said Tuesday that consumer confidence rose in January to its highest level since July 2002.

The board said its index of consumer confidence rose to 96.8 this month from a revised 91.7 in December.

The index is a prognosticator of consumer spending. When people are feeling confident about the economy, they are more likely to spend money, which increases the demand for trucking services.

"Growing optimism about the overall health of the economy continues to bolster consumers’ short-term outlook," said Lynn Franco, director of the board's Consumer Research Center. "But consumers’ assessment of current conditions, which strongly hinges on improvements in the labor market, remains both weak and volatile."

A big jump in consumers' attitudes about conditions six months from now helped boost the overall report, as the expectations index rose to 108.1 from 103.3. That's the highest since May 2002.

The index measuring sentiment about the current economy rose to 80 from 74.3 in December. That reflected concern about the economy creating only 1,000 jobs last month, the Conference Board said.

In addition, 22% said business conditions are good, up from 18.6% in December, while the share who saw business conditions as bad fell to 22.8% from 24.5%.

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