Our Opinion: Recession-numb buyers make the case for change
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.
Consumers remain "bullish on buying opportunities and are likely to be even more optimistic when they see the drastically lower prices in the coming months from retailers trying to boost holiday sales among the most cautious U.S. consumers since the Great Depression," Chris McCarty, survey director of UF's Bureau of Economic and Business Research, told the Gainesville Sun.
The UF survey found the confidence level among Floridians flattened off in October after rising a little in August and September. Concerns about the state's jobless rating, now at 11 percent, and pessimism about the lack of jobs and lower salaries fuel a reticence to spend, even among those currently employed.
- Consumer confidence
- Economy
- Florida data
- National data
- Recession
- Retail sales
- Survey research
- Taxes
- UF Survey Research Center