Consumer confidence takes unexpected fall in June

NEW YORK (AP) — Americans - whose hope for the economy had been rising since March - are starting to lose faith, pushing down a widely watched barometer of sentiment in June.

The New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index now stands at 49.3, down from its revised May level of 54.8.

Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had projected confidence would be virtually unchanged at 55 this month. The dip follows surges in April and May that were helped by a stock market rally.

The index comprises two parts. The Present Situation Index, which measures how shoppers feel now about the economy, declined to 24.8 from 29.7. The Expectations Index, shoppers' outlook for the next six months, declined to 65.5 from 71.5 in May.

Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said in a statement that the decline in consumers' current view - caused by a less favorable assessment of business conditions and employment - "continues to imply that economic conditions, while not as weak as earlier this year, are nonetheless weak."

She said the six-month outlook suggests consumers are "less negative" about the months ahead, rather than anticipating strong growth.