U.S. consumer confidence declines in February

U.S. consumer confidence, which had increased in January, declined in February, the New York-based research group The Conference Board said Tuesday in a report.

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index registered 96.4 in February, down from 103.8 in January.

"After a large gain in January, consumer confidence retreated in February, but still remains at pre-recession levels," said Lynn Franco, director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board.

The report showed the Present Situation Index decreased to 110.2 from 113.9, while the Expectations Index declined to 87.2 from 97.0 in January.

"Consumers' assessment of current conditions remained positive, but short-term expectations declined. While the number of consumers expecting conditions to deteriorate was virtually unchanged, fewer consumers expect conditions to improve, prompting a less upbeat outlook," said Franco.

"Despite this month's decline, consumers remain confident that the economy will continue to expand at the current pace in the months ahead," she added.

Consumers' optimism about the short-term outlook was considerably less positive in February. Those expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months decreased from 18.9 percent to 16.1 percent, while those expecting business conditions to worsen increased from 8.2 percent to 8.7 percent.

Meanwhile, consumers' outlook for the labor market was also less optimistic.

Those anticipating more jobs in the months ahead decreased from 17.3 percent to 13.4 percent. However, those anticipating fewer jobs declined from 14.8 percent to 14.3 percent. Endi