Investing.com - U.S. consumer confidence rose more-than-expected in February, bolstering optimism over the health of the economy, industry data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the Conference Board, a market research group, said its index of consumer confidence rose to 96.2 this month from a reading of 94.0 in February, whose figure was revised from a previously reported 92.2.
Analysts expected the index to increase to 94.0 in March.
The Present Situation Index declined moderately from 115.0 to 113.5, while the Expectations Index increased from 79.9 to 84.7 in March.
Commenting on the report, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center Lynn Franco said, “Consumers’ assessment of current conditions posted a moderate decline, while expectations regarding the short-term turned more favorable as last month’s turmoil in the financial markets appears to have abated.”
She added that, “On balance, consumers do not foresee the economy gaining any significant momentum in the near-term, nor do they see it worsening.”
The monthly Consumer Confidence Survey, based on a probability-design random sample, is conducted for The Conference Board by Nielsen, a leading global provider of information and analytics around what consumers buy and watch. The cutoff date for the preliminary results was March 17.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.1203 from around 1.1199 ahead of the release of the data, GBP/USD was at 1.4275 from 1.4265 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 113.42 from 113.44 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 95.92, compared to 95.95 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock markets were down after the open. The Dow 30 shed 0.20%, the S&P 500 dipped 0.14%, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.05%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,227.40 a troy ounce, compared to $1,226.50 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $38.25 a barrel from $38.04 earlier.