My comment: I quote from the article "ShopperTrak has estimated that 9.9 percent fewer shoppers will descend on stores this holiday season". This is just a prediction, not a fact yet. If finally it happens, that would be a serious problem. From an economic perspective it would mean that the US economy lost 9.9% of people aprox. From a human perspective, it would mean that the amount of people that cannot buy absolutely nothing grew such amount, I know what Christmas means in the West, if someone cannot buy for Christmas it means he/she cannot buy absolutely nothing but for survival (some of them).
At the same time, to rise 3% on sales, probably matches inflation rate (I have not such information yet). If less people buys the same (or more), it means that the people who buy, buy more. Therefore, what we see is that people is falling into poverty, and the gap between poverty and middle classes is wider. As we were realizing in the first half of this year, before I left the department where I was until July. We could expect that, yes. But it is still unhuman. In other words, everybody is suffering this crisis, but they suffer it much deeper as their income level is lower, as much as to marginalise huge amounts of people. More than ever, development from below ! Peace and best wishes. Xi http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aBvgyrY3aNPg&refer=home Nov. 29 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. holiday retail sales increased 3 percent yesterday from a year earlier, the smallest gain for a “Black Friday” in three years, research firm ShopperTrak RCT Corp. said. Sales rose to $10.6 billion, the Chicago-based company said in a statement. The increase was the smallest since a decline of 0.9 percent in 2005 and compares with a jump of 8.3 percent last year. “So far, so good,” said Craig Johnson, president of Customer Growth Partners LLC, a retail consulting firm based in New Canaan, Connecticut. “But a decent Black Friday figure doesn’t predict the whole season. The question is, how much momentum we can keep” in this “challenging” economic environment, Johnson said. U.S. retailers are making earlier and deeper price cuts to lure Christmas shoppers, who are coping with the shrinking values of homes and stock holdings along with increasing joblessness. The season can account for as much as a third of annual profit. November and December sales at U.S. stores open at least a year may rise 1 percent, the smallest gain since 2002, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers, a New York- based trade group. Sales May Rise Sales may rise as much as 2 percent for the November- December period after the slow start in the first three weeks of November, Johnson said. Individuals may spend an average of $616 on holiday gifts this year, down 29 percent from a year earlier, according to a Gallup Inc. poll. Retailers promoted “doorbuster” deals to attract customers yesterday, called Black Friday because it was said to be when retailers started to make their annual profit. A worker was trampled by customers and killed yesterday at a Wal-Mart Stores Inc. location on New York’s Long Island, according to local police and the company. At least four shoppers were hurt at the store in Valley Stream, located about 13 miles (20 kilometers) from New York City, Nassau County Police said in a statement. U.S. shoppers gathered by the hundreds waiting to enter malls on Black Friday, some of which threw open their doors as early as midnight. They were lined up for discounts of as much as 70 percent. Kohl’s Corp., the fourth-largest U.S. department store, opened at 4 a.m. Wal-Mart and Macy’s Inc. had a 5 a.m. start. Gap opened some locations on Thanksgiving Day. Fewer Shoppers ShopperTrak has estimated that 9.9 percent fewer shoppers will descend on stores this holiday season, producing a sales gain of 0.1 percent. “The mid-level department stores are the ones to watch,” Jay McIntosh, president of Consumer Foresight LLC, a Chicago- based consulting firm, said yesterday in a Bloomberg Television interview. “They’ll struggle this year. People tend to be trading down.” Consumers’ spending makes up more than two-thirds of the U.S. economy, and recent government data signal they are pulling back. Americans cut purchases by 1 percent last month, the biggest decline since the 2001 recession. After adjusting for inflation, spending was down for the fifth straight month, the longest streak since 1990-1991, according to U.S. Commerce Department data. Individuals may spend an average of $616 on holiday gifts this year, down 29 percent from a year earlier, according to a Gallup Inc. poll. ShopperTrak measures foot traffic in shopping centers and malls using more than 50,000 video devices. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "World-thread" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/world-thread?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
