By Jessica Coacci

Consumer confidence ticked up in June as moderating oil prices provided some relief to American households, a monthly survey from The Conference Board said.

The research group said Tuesday its consumer confidence index rose to 91.2 in June from a downwardly revised 90.6 in May. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected a higher reading of 94.2.

Consumers' assessment of current business and labor-market conditions fell by three points to 116.4. Meanwhile, the expectations index, based on short-term outlook for income, business and labor market conditions, rose three points to 74.4.

The Conference Board said perceptions of employment conditions declined, with the labor market differential - the share of consumers saying jobs are "plentiful" minus the share saying jobs are "hard to get" - declining by 2.6 percentage points to 2.4%. Economists watch this labor-market differential to gauge how tight labor conditions are for households.

Moderating gasoline prices and news of a ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran are slowly swaying consumers to feel marginally better about their economic situations. Some economists are forecasting that the worst of the inflation surge from rising energy prices tied to the conflict in Iran is behind households.

A separate reading of sentiment from the University of Michigan last week reported consumer sentiment was starting to climb off the survey's record lows, and expectations for long-run inflation edged down. Outside of moderating gas prices, the jobs market has shown signs of stabilizing, with May marking its best three-month stretch in more than two years.

However, consumers still report having a harder time finding work. The Conference Board said the percentage of consumers saying jobs are "hard to get" rose to 22.5%, a five-and-a-half-year high.

More details on the jobs market will come Thursday, when the Labor Department releases its employment situation report for June. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal expect the U.S. economy to add 115,000 jobs.

Write to Jessica Coacci at jessica.coacci@wsj.com