American consumers' confidence remains steady

American consumers are feeling confident about current economic conditions but are a bit warier about the future.

The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index was essentially unchanged in July, dipping to 97.3 from a revised 97.4 in June. The business group's index includes consumers' assessment of the economy now and what they expect over the next six months. Their view of today's economy rose to the highest level since September, but their outlook slipped.