State's Consumer Confidence Takes Unexpected Jump

GAINESVILLE (CBSMiami/AP) — There was an unexpected jump in the state's consumer confidence in the month of June.

The monthly University of Florida survey released Tuesday shows consumer confidence jumped up to 82 on a scale of 2 to 150 benchmarked to 1966. That's the highest its been since the recession ended.

Chris McCarty, director of the center that does the survey, said the jump was a surprise. The survey had shown consumer sentiment remaining in the same range since the end of the Great Recession in 2009.

He said that the jump was surprising given a rise in unemployment and a slowdown in housing starts.

McCarty also warned that trends show that the state recovered much more strongly after recessions in the '90s and the early part of this century.

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