Consumer Sentiment Rises Fourth Straight Month

Ann Arbor, MI, Dec. 22, 2011 -- The University of Michigan/Thomson Reuters Consumer Sentiment Index reached 69.9 in the final reading for December compared with 64.1 in November.

This is the fourth consecutive monthly gain in the index. A preliminary reading for December pegged the gauge at 67.7.

Economists had expected a final December result of 68.7, with consumers buoyed by declining retail gasoline prices and the large drop in initial jobless claims.