RJ and Makay

The U.S. Consumer Confidence Index (CCI), a commonly used gauge of consumer sentiment about the economy, rose in the first couple weeks of February to its highest level since last June. The CCI now stands at 75.1, up almost a full point from 74.2 at the end of January and more than 22 points from June 2010's level of 52.9.

Notably, economists polled by MarketWatch were accurate in their prediction for mid-February, which called for CCI of 75.