Consumer confidence ticks up, near record low: report

NEW YORK (Reuters) - American consumers' confidence inched up in the latest week but was still deep into negative territory and near its record low as gasoline prices reached record highs, a report showed on Tuesday.

The ABC News Consumer Comfort Index rose to -44 in the week to June 15, not far from its record low if -51 reached three weeks ago. The index ranges from -100 to +100, its 2008 average is -37 and its all-time average -10.

"Retail gas prices have hit new records in each of the last nine weeks, the same period in which the (index has) been at or below -40," ABC said in a statement.

The index's components were mixed in the latest week, as positive views of the national economy and those on the buying climate both gained 1 percentage point, to 13 and 23 percent respectively, while views on personal finances were unchanged at 48 percent.

Confidence measures are generally viewed as a barometer of consumer spending, which accounts for two-thirds of the U.S. economy. However, economists note that consumers do not always act in accordance with their statements to surveys.

The ABC News consumer confidence survey was based on a sample of about 1,000 interviews conducted in the four weeks to June 15 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Dan Grebler)