US consumer confidence ebbs in July as Covid-19 infections flare-up

US consumer confidence ebbed in July amid a flare-up in Covid-19 infections across the country, which is threatening the economy's recovery from an unprecedented recession caused by the pandemic.

The Conference Board said on Tuesday its consumer confidence index dropped to a reading of 92.6 this month from 98.3 in June.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index would drop to 94.5 in July.

The reopening of businesses has boosted economic activity in recent months, but left the country struggling to contain the resurgence in new cases of the coronavirus, forcing some authorities in the hard-hit South and West