US consumers' mood brightened slightly late December but still soured for the month as a whole, a report showed today.
The Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers index of confidence edged up to 75.5 in late December from a mid-December reading of 74.5, slightly above economists' forecast but down from November's reading of 76.1.
The US economy has been plagued by a housing crisis that spread to mortgage-linked financial assets and crippled the credit system, threatening growth.
The survey's index of current economic conditions slipped to 91 at the end of December - the lowest since March 2003 - from 92.1 in early December and from 91.5 in November.
The reading of consumer expectations rose to 65.6 at the end of December from a mid-December reading of 63.2 and a November reading of 66.2.