Goldilocks Rocks on Black Friday, +8.3% Increase
NEW YORK (AP) -- The nation's retailers had a robust start to the holiday shopping season, according to results announced today by a national research group that tracks sales at retail outlets across the country. According to ShopperTrak RCT, which tracks sales at more than 50,000 retail outlets, total sales rose 8.3% to $10.3 billion on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, compared with $9.5 billion on the same day a year ago. ShopperTrak had expected an increase of no more than 4-5%.
By the way, consider that gas prices last Thanksgiving were about $2.25 per gallon, and gas prices today are about $3.09. Even with gas prices 37% higher than a year ago, consumers spent a record amount this year on Black Friday. See the post below.
7 Comments:
8.3% is about how much more I am paying for peanut butter too but that doesn't mean I think the economy is doing just fine. Thanksgiving dinner also cost about 11% more than last year but that doesn't mean that consumers believe the economy is on the right track.
Rather it could also be that consumers are taking advantage of deep discounts and stocking up in anticipation of big price increases to come--as the result of higher gas and oil prices and the continued decent in the value of the U.S. dollar.
Also we are seeing all time record numbers of one day trips into the U.S. from Canada. Presumably the Canadians are taking advantage of their stronger currency to go on one day bargain hunting trips into the U.S.
"By the way, consider that gas prices last Thanksgiving were about $2.25 per gallon, and gas prices today are about $3.09"
One could just as well say that gasoline spending is up this Black
Friday by more than 37%.
My peanut butter from Walmart used to be $3.16 and now it is $2.78 which looks like a lower price to me. Go Walmart!
Anonymous said...
My peanut butter from Walmart used to be $3.16 and now it is $2.78 which looks like a lower price to me. Go Walmart!
I only eat real peanut butter.
We have not seen an 8% inflation increase in the last year, have we?
The National Retail Federation's 2007 Black Friday Weekend Survey showed customers spent an average of $347.44, down 3.5 percent from $360.15 last year.
The decline was offset by a 4.8 percent increase in the number of shoppers, making the weekend's total spending results "extremely similar" with last year, said federation spokeswoman Ellen Davis.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/25/AR2007112501139.html
"Before you get too excited, Merrill Lynch economist David Rosenberg writes that in 2002, ShopperTrak showed a 12.3 percent year-over-year increase on Black Friday "and yet retail sales ended up just 1.3 percent for the entire holiday season."
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/11/27/BUB1TJBDH.DTL
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