The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index rose in January following a moderate decline in January. The index rose to a reading of 114.8 (1985=100), up from 111.6 in January.

“Consumer confidence increased in February and remains at a 15-year high (July 2001, 116.3),” said Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at The Conference Board. “Consumers rated current business and labor market conditions more favorably this month than in January. Expectations improved regarding the short-term outlook for business, and to a lesser degree jobs and income prospects. Overall, consumers expect the economy to continue expanding in the months ahead.”  

Consumers’ assessment of the labor market was mixed, although the outlook for more jobs was moderately more upbeat than last month. The proportion expecting more jobs in the months ahead increased to 20.4% in February from 19.7% in January while those anticipating fewer jobs declined to 13.6% from 14.4%. However, the number of consumers stating that jobs were “plentiful” fell to 26.2% in February from 27.1% in January although those claiming jobs are “hard to get” also decreased to 20.3% from 21.1%.

The percentage of consumers expecting their incomes to increase edged up to 18.3% from 18.1% while the proportion expecting a decrease fell to 8.2% from 9.4%.