According to Bloomberg, in a surprise turn, U.S. consumer confidence unexpectedly climbed to a five-month high in January as optimism about the economy and labor market improved.
Bloomberg has more:
The Conference Board’s index advanced to 80.7 from a revised 77.5 in December that was weaker than initially estimated, the New York-based private research group reported today. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a reading of 78.
"One would expect an acceleration in spending momentum going into 2014," said Millan Mulraine, deputy head of U.S. research and strategy at TD Securities USA LLC in New York, who projected a confidence reading of 80.2. "You’d probably want to see these numbers being sustained over the next few months for you to believe that it will be reflected in spending habits."
