It appears that same-store retail sales have continued to do reasonably well.
With both Christmas and Hanukkah coming late in the week, and considering that two of last year's top four shopping days fell immediately before Christmas, it is still possible that we will see a boost in spending.
For the most part, spending continued steadily throughout the weekend.
Swapping merchandise and cashing in on your gift certificates.
Despite this mini-surge in spending, the modest gain in same-store sales did not meet early projections.
There are more people shopping, but they're spending less.
A long pre-Christmas shopping weekend helped buoy December retail sales by 2.1 percent, just edging out November's 1.9 percent gain. As a result, the year ended on a positive note, albeit modest; and consumer confidence is on the rise again - a good sign moving into the New Year.
A welcomed relief from severe mid-December weather precipitated sales surges in the Midwest and Northeast. However, other parts of the country experienced just the opposite trend because of the ice storm which paralyzed parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.
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