Investing.com - U.S. consumer confidence fell more than expected in April, dampening optimism over the outlook for the consumption-driven economy, industry data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the Conference Board, a market research group, said its index of consumer confidence dropped to 120.3 this month from a reading of 124.9 (revised from an initial 125.6) in March.
Analysts had expected the index to fall to 122.5 in April.
The Present Situation Index decreased from 143.9 to 140.6 and the Expectations Index declined from 112.3 last month to 106.7.
“Consumer confidence declined in April after increasing sharply over the past two months, but still remains at strong levels,” Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board, said.
Franco noted that consumers assessed current business conditions and, to a lesser extent, the labor market less favorably than in March.
“Looking ahead, consumers were somewhat less optimistic about the short-term outlook for business conditions, employment and income prospects,” Franco added
“Despite April’s decline, consumers remain confident that the economy will continue to expand in the months ahead,” she concluded.
After the report, which was released simultaneously with March new home sales and the Richmond Fed manufacturing index for April, EUR/USD was trading at 1.0919 from around 1.0896 ahead of the publication; GBP/USD was at 1.2815 from 1.2816 earlier; while USD/JPY was at 110.81 from 110.63 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, traded at 98.79 compared to 98.89 prior to the release.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock markets traded higher after the open. The Dow 30 gained 1.09%, the S&P 500 advanced 0.65%, while the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.61%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,267.63 a troy ounce, compared to $1,269.22 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $49.13 a barrel from $49.03 earlier.