Consumer Confidence Falls for Fifth Straight Month in DecemberS&P 500 Closes at a New High on Blowout GDP ReportLast Updated:6 hours agoConsumers are wrapping up the year feeling pretty grinchy about the U.S. economy, with consumer confidence coming in below expectations and marking the fifth consecutive month of declines.The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index fell to a reading of 89.1 in December from November’s upwardly revised reading of 92.9. Economists polled by FactSet were expecting the index to rise to 91.5.November’s reading improved slightly because responses collected after the end of the government shutdown were more positive than those at the beginning of the impasse, the Conference Board said.