What's on the minds of Florida consumers? Just now, according to a new University of Florida survey, they're feeling more optimistic about their current personal finances but not so comfortable with the U.S. economy.

And the good-news-bad-news scenario for our local merchants is that consumers plan to be shopping for the holidays — but primarily if there are plenty of yesteryear price tags out there.

Home prices in South Florida continued to eke out modest gains even as confidence in the economy stalled, according to two widely-watched reports released Tuesday, sending mixed messages to a jittery market during the run-up to the critical holiday-shopping season.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home-price index for Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties climbed 1.1 percent from July to August -- its fourth consecutive gain. Nationally, the index was up 1.2 percent.

For the first time in over a year, the Dow Jones Industrial Index briefly hit 10,000. While much of the economy is still languishing -- for one, unemployment hit 9.8 percent earlier this month -- the Dow has risen roughly 50 percent since March.

Whether the Dow breaking the 10,000 barrier is a good indicator of the larger economy -- or just Wall Street's recent turnaround -- is a matter for debate. Judging by the stock market alone, the economy seems to be inching its way toward a recovery.

Floridians are a bit more confident in the economy, with the consumer confidence level up three points to 74 in September, according to a new University of Florida survey.

The three-point increase follows a four-point revised increase in August.

However, the national consumer confidence level, which was also up in August, dipped to 53.1 from 54.5.

“I think Florida consumers are buying into the argument that the worst of the recession is over and we have avoided a complete meltdown,” said Chris McCarty, survey director of UF’s Bureau of Economic and Business, in a news release.

Finally, retail sales figures are poised to turn positive.

But don't get too excited about forecasts that consumer spending, the biggest single component driving the U.S. economy, will edge back into the black for the Christmas holiday.

What's happened is retail sales — and their key role in when the recession actually ends — are about to start being compared to last fall. That's when sales dropped off a cliff and stayed there after the financial markets meltdown.

WASHINGTON - Finally, a glimmer of good news has broken through the gloomy jobs picture.

A down-tick in the nation's unemployment rate has raised hopes that the economy is beginning to recover and will produce jobs quicker than expected.

Economists say this and other signs point to recovery, even in states such as Florida that were hit hardest by the recession. The waves of layoffs may be coming to an end.

NEW YORK — Although consumer confidence may be increasing, it's not showing up at the cash register yet. Many retailers posted disappointing May sales on Thursday, and food and necessities remained high on shoppers' lists.

According to a Goldman Sachs/ICSC tally, overall same-store sales fell 4.6 percent, worse than the 3-percent drop predicted. The lower-than-expected results did not include Wal-Mart, which in recent months has boosted total results, but has stopped reporting monthly figures.

We first heard the term decades ago: The "Sun Belt" was just starting a run of phenomenal growth - and no wonder. It conjured a sunny state of mind as well as a balmy place on the map.

Everybody, it seemed, wanted a spot in the sun.

For a generation or more, the Sun Belt thrived like no other region in America - a growth so steady it felt as though the boom would never end. But now it has, replaced by a bust that has left some swaths of the region suffering as severely as anywhere in the current recession.

What brought the dark clouds to the Sun Belt, and are they here to stay?

MIAMI (AP) -- Sales of existing homes fell 16 percent in the South in February, as potential buyers remained cautious amid difficult economic conditions and waited for the stimulus package to take effect, the National Association of Realtors said Monday.

The median sales price of existing homes in the South slid 10 percent from last year to $146,700 as distressed property sales dominated, while most markets wrestled with high inventory and low-ball offers.