US consumer confidence rebounds in December

US consumer confidence rebounded in December after a one-month slump but some worries remained over the medium-term outlook, the Conference Board reported Tuesday.

The Board's consumer confidence index rose to 96.5 from 92.6 in November, with survey responses showing an improvement especially in consumers' assessment of the current situation in the economy.

But the reading was still slightly below the average for the entire 2015, showing the continued caution among consumers.

Index components revealed significant doubts that business conditions will be any better six months hence, and a large percent of respondents expecting that the jobs and income situation will be the same as currently. But fewer foresee a worsening of the labor market over the same period.

The number of consumers reporting plans for buying homes or cars in the next half-year fell, and those planning major appliance purchases rose only slightly from November.

"Looking ahead to 2016, consumers are expecting little change in both business conditions and the labor market," said Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at The Conference Board.

"Expectations regarding their financial outlook are mixed, but the optimists continue to outweigh the pessimists," Franco said in a statement.