Consumer confidence rose in January in the United Kingdom although households' inclination to spend fell somewhat, a bank survey said Wednesday. The Nationwide Building Society said its confidence index was up three points to 73, nearly double the level a year ago, when Britain was sliding deeper into recession. January's figure reversed a decline in confidence in December. The index measuring confidence in spending fell from 108 in December to 96 in January. As a measure of the depth of British gloom, the bank's finding that 69 percent of respondents thought the economy was in bad shape represented an improvement over recent months. Britain's recession officially ended in the fourth quarter when the economy grew by just 0.1 percent. 'Positive signs from the manufacturing sector and labor market may have helped boost confidence during January, but confidence is likely to remain fragile for some months to come,' said Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide's chief economist. 