American consumers are feeling less confident in December, a business research group says.

The Conference Board said Monday that its consumer confidence index fell back in December to 104.7 from 112.8 in November. Analysts forecast a rise to a reading of 113.8. Consumers had been feeling increasingly confident in recent months, spending more in the run-up to the all-important holiday shopping season.

The consumer confidence index measures both Americans’ assessment of current economic conditions and their outlook for the next six months.

The measure of Americans’ short-term expectations for income, business and the job market tumbled more than a dozen points to 81.1. The Conference Board says a reading under 80 can signal a potential recession in the near future.

Government regulators close investigation into Ford Focus recalls

Government safety regulators said Monday they have closed an investigation into two previous recalls of the Ford Focus after determining that Ford Motor Co. has satisfied its concerns.

In 2018, Ford recalled around 1.5 million Ford Focus sedans from the 2012-2018 model years because they could lose power. The issue was a malfunctioning canister purge valve and software that didn’t adequately detect when it was stuck open. If the valve was stuck open, excessive vacuum could build up in the fuel management system and deform the fuel tank.