Consumer confidence fell in February as gas prices started to rise from a six-year low and damped Americans’ optimism about the economy. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary sentiment index decreased to 93.6 from a final January reading of 98.1 that was the highest since the start of 2004. The median projection in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for no change from last month. Prices at the gas pump have climbed this month from a six-year low, and the survey showed more Americans were less upbeat about the labor market after hearing of dismissals in the oil patch. Consumers also said they ... (full story)