GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida’s retailers are in for a repeat of last year’s dismal holiday season, with consumers expecting to spend about the same amount of money on gifts, a new University of Florida survey finds.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida’s consumer confidence fell three points to 69 in November amid continued concerns over the state’s high unemployment rate, according to a new University of Florida survey.

“We had expected consumer confidence to fluctuate in the upper 60s to low 70s for the next several months, so a decline was not a surprise,” said Chris McCarty, survey director of UF’s Bureau of Economic and Business Research. “There are reasons for growing pessimism, particularly lingering employment issues that are expected to get worse over the next several months.”

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The state’s double-digit unemployment rate is likely to blame for a two-point drop in Florida’s consumer confidence in July to 67, despite good news about housing prices and the stock market, a new University of Florida survey finds.

“We had expected consumer confidence to fluctuate between the upper 60s and low 70s for the next few months, but given the current economic climate, this decline comes as a bit of a surprise,” said Chris McCarty, director of UF’s Survey Research Center at the Bureau of Economic and Business Research.

National consumer confidence posted its second large increase in two months. But Florida consumer sentiment was essentially flat in May, according to figures released Tuesday.

The national Consumer Confidence Index was up 14 points this month, to 54.9, according to the Conference Board, the New-York based group that conducts the monthly survey. Driving this was the ''Expectations Index,'' which is the part of the survey that measures beliefs about the future. That part was up 22 points, to 72.3.

Sentiment about the present was up a more modest 3.4 points, to 28.9.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Consumer confidence among Floridians surged six points to 71 in April amid indicators of flattening housing prices statewide and news that the economy has not worsened, a new University of Florida survey finds.

“The size of the increase comes as somewhat of a surprise,” said Chris McCarty, director of UF’s Survey Research Center at the Bureau of Economic and Business Research. “We had expected confidence among Florida’s consumers to move up and down in a fairly narrow window from the low to the upper 60s.”

On Wall Street, the stock market has gone up 12 days out of the past 20. Consumer confidence is up a tick, in Florida and across the nation. Even the housing and auto industries are showing unexpected signs of life.

The economic news de jour is playing a role in how Floridians feel about their future as it fluctuates from one day to the next.

While consumer confidence among those in the Sunshine State rose three points to 65 in March, a University of Florida researcher says it may have more to do with perception than reality.

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama's strategy for reviving the economy now turns largely on restoring public confidence, a psychological lift that would prompt consumers to shop, bankers to lend and investors to buy.

The president is racing from coast to coast to try to buck up consumers while the government pumps money into the economy, a theme sure to emerge at his nationally televised news conference set for 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

The message appears to be getting through to Floridians.

Unemployment continues to rise in Lake and Sumter counties. Out-of-work residents flock to libraries and job fairs to apply for job openings. Employers are inundated with hundreds of job applications. With less disposable income, consumer confidence is dwindling. Here's a quick look at the state of unemployment, by the numbers.

13,055* -- The number of people in Lake County who were on unemployment benefits in January. Lake's unemployment rate rose by more than one percentage point to 9.7 percent in January. It's the highest jobless rate in Lake in more than 16 years.

Floridians' consumer confidence fell in February, as hopes dimmed that the nation would find a quick fix for the troubled economy. Nationwide, consumer confidence is now at an all-time low.

The University of Florida says its index of Florida's consumer confidence fell three points to 63. Survey Research Center Director Chris McCarty of the Bureau of Economic and Business Research said the indicator fell because "the novelty of a new administration met with the sustained reality of a faltering economy."