Despite reports of weaker
spending on the Friday after Thanksgiving, the nation's stores appear to have much better this November than last year - when consumers were so spooked by the deteriorating economy that they essentially went into hiding. Data to be published on Wednesday showed sales in November rose in some major retailing categories and fell in others. The top-performing sectors last month were retail e-commerce (up 12.3%, compared with November 2008), electronics (up 6.6 percent), jewelry (up 4.6 percent) and appliances (up 3.5 percent), according to Spending Pulse, an information service of MasterCard Advisors. Sales of luxury good tumbled 7.3 %, clothing declined 5.7% and footwear dipped 2%.
Last year on the day after Thanksgiving, known as Black Friday, sales were surprisingly strong in some big retailing categories, like clothing, footwear and jewelry. Sales in those
sectors were about the same as this past Friday, said Michael Mc Namara, vice president for research and analysis at Spending Pulse.
Sales this holiday season, typically defined as the combined months of November and December, are expected to be about the same as last Christmas, when
retailers posted their worst sales figures in decades. The National Retail Federation estimates holiday sales will decline 1%, while the International Council of Shopping Center estimates sales will increase 1 to 2 %.
Pierre-Alexandre Tonin
(Source: www.nytimes.com)
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