The surveys' preliminary January reading on the overall consumer sentiment slipped to 72.7, below 74.5 in December. It fell short of a 75.4 reading predicted by economists polled recently by Reuters.
Consumers' current mood deteriorated with average gasoline prices stuck above $3 a gallon. The surveys' barometer of current economic conditions was 79.8 in early January, down from 85.3 in December and below a forecast of 84.6.
The surveys' one-year inflation expectation rose to 3.3 percent from 3.0 percent in December, which was the highest since October 2008. But the five-to-10-year inflation outlook held steady at 2.8 percent for a fourth straight month
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