Posted on 12/23/2013 5:43:59 PM PST by Hojczyk
He said it’s crucial for retailers to get sales post Christmas as consumers visit stores to redeem gift cards, which don’t count as sales until after they are redeemed. In fact, Dec. 26 and this Saturday both are expected to be among the season’s top 10 shopping days. “There’s a lot of money that’s still out there.”
Meanwhile, weak in-store sales are being partly offset by growth online. Online sales between Dec. 15 and Dec. 18, for instance, jumped 13%, with 23% traffic growth, according to Custora Pulse, which tracks real time data from over 100 U.S. retailers.
Indeed, other data show that while consumers were doing last minute shopping this past week, it won’t be enough to make up for December’s overall lower numbers.
“We think business picked up strongly this past weekend, as anticipated, but total holiday sales are still trending below plan,” said Morgan Stanley analyst Kimberly Greenberger. “The question now is will retailers meet or miss Street expectations? Beating, except for a few isolated cases, looks increasingly unlikely. If sales over the last few days before Christmas aren’t terrific, negative 4Q earnings revisions could follow.”
Greenberger said her research showed 80% to 85% of all specialty apparel retail goods are on sale, up from 75% last year. Half of the retailers in her coverage universe are giving whole-store discounts, up from 35% last year. “While week 3 didn’t reveal price reductions implying all-out panic, there weren’t many positive signs either,” she said.
(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.marketwatch.com ...
I think next year is going to be bad for the middle class.. what is left of it..a debt hang over
Many stores that I shopped last week had empty shelves, it was like they were anticipating low sales and didn’t want to accumulate post Christmas excess inventory.
Does ammo count?
In my book a stocking full of full ammo boxes is the best gift, along with a few extra Mags.
“There’s a lot of money that’s still out there.” — Why are they quoting Obama, Reid and Pelosi in this article?
I’ve never see the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto more crowded than today. Mobbed and not a parking spot to be had anywhere. I gave up and went home rather than get stuck in the hour long jams in the parking lot.
I did my part. I went to Lowes this afternoon and bought a tube of touch up paint for the bathtub.
.... I have noticed that the parking lots are not as full as they were in previous years. I had to slip into Walmart on Sunday afternoon to pick up a card and was very surprised to see that the parking lot was just a bit heavier than the usual Sunday!!! In years past it would have been next to impossible to find a parking spot.
There's the money quote. Stand by for a hard 2014.
I think that's an infected pulse. It could be fatal.
I’ll probably go shopping tomorrow. Some stores start posting after Christmas sales an hour or two before closing so they’ll be ready to roll on the 26th. And of course I’ll go the day after Christmas to stock up on lights and decorations. JCPenney used to have great after Christmas sales on clothing, but I don’t really need much this year.
Nice and shiny toys, never to be used against the government ripping away our freedoms on a daily basis. Who cares!
They all better spend this Xmas cause once they have to start paying those increased premiums + co-pays+ high deductables they are gonna be flat broke
My prediction the Economy crashes by may-june 14.
People know that the massive increased costs of health insurance and medical expenses due to obamacare are going to hammer them. At those who haven’t had their hours cut back to under 29 or have simply been let go.
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