NEW YORK, July 29 (UPI) -- The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index, which was virtually unchanged in June, declined unexpectedly in July by nearly 7 points.
Economists had expected a reading of slight increase at 85. The index now stands at 76.6, down from 83.5 in June.
The Consumer Confidence Survey, based on a representative sample of 5,000 U.S. households, is conducted for The Conference Board by NFO WorldGroup.
Consumers anticipating more jobs to become available over the next six months declined to 16.8 percent from 18.9 percent, while those expecting fewer jobs increased to 19.8 percent from 16.9 percent.
The proportion of consumers anticipating an increase in their incomes declined to 15.7 percent from 17.1 percent.
"Expectations are likely to remain weak until the job market becomes more favorable," said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board's Consumer Research Center.
