The Conference Board's consumer confidence index fell in January. It now stands at 87.9, down from 90.6 in December.

Consumers saying conditions are "bad" rose to 20.0% from 18.8% in the prior month. The percentage of consumers saying jobs are "hard to get" fell to 20.1% from 22.7%. However, those saying job are "plentiful" rose to 23.9% from 23.6%

"The modest improvement in consumer confidence last month was short-lived," said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board consumer research center. "Consumers' appraisal of current business conditions is becoming more negative and their assessment of the job market, while slightly less negative than in December, is more negative than a year ago."

The consumer confidence survey is based on a sample of 5,000 U.S. households.