The Conference Board's consumer confidence index rose in December. It now stands at 88.6, up from 87.8 in November.

However, consumers claiming conditions are "good" fell to 20.3% from 22.5%. Those saying jobs are "hard to get" increased to 23.5% from 21.4%. Still, those expecting business conditions to worsen in the next six months fell to 14.1% from 16.6%.

"Consumers' short-term outlook regarding business conditions, employment, inflation, and stock prices improved marginally," said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board's consumer research center. "However, while consumers are less negative about the near-term future, they remain far from optimistic."

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