The U.S. consumer confidence cooled as employment gains slowed down, indicated the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment for March released on Friday.

The fresh reading of the index dipped to 75.7 from 76.2 last month, and ended the previous seven straight months of gains.

It responded to the weaker than expected jobs data released last week. In March the U.S. private sector only added 121,000 net jobs, half as many as in February and the fewest in five months. Initial claims for jobless benefits were 380,000 last week, the highest since January 28, which indicated labor market was losing its momentum.

In addition, the current gasoline prices remained a drag on households' budget. The U.S. national average price of gasoline was 3.901 dollars per gallon on Friday, still near its record high of 4.114 dollars per gallon, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA).