Florida consumers felt a bit better as 2025 ended, report says

(The Center Square) – Is it a good time to make a big purchase? Will the economy improve in the next year?

Floridians were feeling a bit more optimistic about the answers to those questions as 2025 ended, according to a new report. The Florida Consumer Sentiment Index by the University of Florida rose 2.4 points in December, higher than the national sentiment’s 1.9-point increase.

The numbers capped a year in which the overall mood on the subject worsened in Florida. Consumer sentiment was 12 points higher at the beginning of 2025 than at the end of it.

Economic factors that likely dampened confidence include reductions in the federal workforce, the longest government shutdown in American history and policy changes from the Trump administration that brought uncertainty, according to Hector H. Sandoval, director of the University of Florida’s Economic Analysis Program.

“As the new year begins, while consumer sentiment declined across sociodemographic groups and across all five compo...