US consumer confidence rises to four-year high

U.S. consumer confidence rose in November to the highest level in more than four years, the Conference Board said on Tuesday. The Conference Board's confidence index climbed to 73.7 from a revised reading of 73.1 in October. It was the best reading since February 2008, beating market expectations. The New York-based private research group said that the Present Situation Index was virtually unchanged at 56.6, as against 56.7 last month. The Expectations Index rose to 85.1 from last month's 84.0. Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at the Conference Board, said: "This month's moderate improvement was the result of an uptick in expectations, while consumers' assessment of present- day conditions continues to hold steady. Over the past few months, consumers have grown increasingly more upbeat about the current and expected state of the job market, and this turnaround in sentiment is helping to boost confidence." The percentage of those expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months edged up to 22.2 percent from 21. 5 percent, while those expecting business conditions to worsen edged down to 14.3 percent from 15.0 percent. Consumers' outlook for the labor market also improved. Those anticipating more jobs in the months ahead marginally improved to 20.3 percent from 19.7 percent, while those expecting fewer jobs remained virtually unchanged at 19.7 percent.