NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Consumer confidence was up only slightly in May, as the latest survey on their outlook on the economy came in below Wall Street expectations Tuesday.
The index from The Conference Board, a private research organization, came in at 93.2, up only slightly from a revised April reading of 93. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com forecast the index would rise to 94.
The conference board report said that growing confidence over the improved employment picture was balanced by concerns over higher gasoline prices and turmoil in Iraq.
"Consumer attitudes are really being tested right now," said Steve Stanley, economist with RBS Greenwich Capital. "The economy and the labor situation are improving, but households are facing 1) surging gas pieces, 2) falling stocks, 3) rising interest rates, and 4) a steady stream of negative press coverage from Iraq."
"The presumption would have to be that gas prices will peak some time soon, and sentiment can do better, but that obviously remains to be seen," Stanley added.
Steven Wieting, senior economist with Citigroup, said the results of this survey show remarkably little change in what is often a volatile number, which he also attributes to the conflicting news reports confronting consumers.
"There's been an ongoing improvement in employment, but gasoline is not friendly -- it's an important headline price," he said.
The report found contradictory results among those surveyed, with both the more positive and the more negative view of the economy gaining at the same time.
The survey found consumers claiming jobs are "hard to get" rose to 30.6 percent from 28.0 percent in April. But those saying jobs are "plentiful" also increased to 16.6 percent from 15.6 percent in April.
A similar split opinion was found when asked about future economic conditions, as those expecting business conditions to improve in the next six months rose to 22.9 percent from 20.8 percent, while those expecting conditions to worsen also increased to 10.1 percent from 9.3 percent.
The future employment outlook showed improvement, as those anticipating more jobs becoming available in the next six months increased to 19.2 percent from 18.3 percent. Those expecting fewer jobs dipped to 17.2 percent from 17.7 percent.
But again that was countered by the portion of consumers anticipating an increase in their incomes, which declined to 16.8 percent from 17.4 percent in April.
Consumer confidence is important because it can affect spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the nation's economic activity.
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