this is interesting:
Saturday November 28, 3:36 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: TeleCheck Services, Inc.
Friday-After-Thanksgiving Sales Climb
4.4 Percent; Telecheck Anticipates 3-T0
5-Percent Seasonal Gain
HOUSTON, Nov. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The first day of the traditional holiday shopping period was an encouraging
sign to retailers, with same store sales climbing 4.4 percent over the same day last year, according to TeleCheck®
Services, the world's leading check acceptance company. TeleCheck anticipates a 3- to 5-percent same-store gain for
the 28-day shopping season. The data are based on a same-store comparison of the dollar volume of authorized
checks written by consumers at more than 27,000 of TeleCheck's 200,000 subscribing locations. Checks account for
about one-third of retail spending. TeleCheck is a subsidiary of First Data Corporation (NYSE: FDC - news).
''Friday's same-store sales data are an early indication that shoppers are meeting retailers' expectations. While the
day-after-Thanksgiving is no longer the biggest day of the season, the one-day sales data provide us with a glimpse
of what we might expect for the rest of the season. The sales growth is in line with the healthy state of the economy
and consumer confidence,'' said Dr. William Ford, TeleCheck's Senior Economic Advisor. In 1997, the
day-after-Thanksgiving was the fifth largest shopping day of the holiday season.
The Midwest region led the nation, followed by the Southeast, the West, the Northeast and Southwest (tied) and the
Mid-Atlantic.
The Midwest's sales jumped 6.7 percent, with Minnesota up 6.7 percent, Illinois up 6.4 percent and Ohio up 6.0
percent. Sales rose 4.7 percent in Wisconsin and 2.5 percent in Michigan. Sales rose by 6.8 percent in
Minneapolis/St. Paul, 3.5 percent in Chicago, 6.7 percent in Cleveland, 4.0 percent in Milwaukee and 1.1 percent in
Detroit.
Sales in the Southeast rose 4.8 percent, led by a 10.6 percent jump in Louisiana. Tennessee gained 5.9 percent, The
Carolinas rose 4.6 percent, Florida increased 3.5 percent and Georgia was up 1.8 percent. Sales climbed 14.8
percent in New Orleans, 4.0 percent in Nashville and 2.3 percent in Memphis. Tampa's sales rose 6.7 percent,
Miami/Ft. Lauderdale's increased 3.3 percent, Orlando's gained 2.8 percent and Atlanta's grew 1.5 percent. The
West was up 4.0 percent, with Colorado's sales jumping 15.2 percent. Arizona rose 5.3 percent, California gained
3.7 percent, Washington grew 3.3 percent, Oregon rose 2.3 percent and Hawaii was up 1.2 percent. Sales climbed
10.5 percent in Denver, 5.7 percent in Phoenix and 4.7 percent in Los Angeles, but dropped 0.1 percent in San
Diego and 3.0 percent in the Bay Area. Seattle's sales rose 5.4 percent and Portland's gained 4.3 percent.
The Northeast and Southwest were up 3.4 percent. In the Northeast, sales rose 5.3 percent in New York and 1.9
percent in Massachusetts. New York City gained 5.8 percent and Boston rose 2.3 percent.
In the Southwest, Missouri was up 4.8 percent, Oklahoma rose 3.1 percent and Texas grew 2.5 percent. St. Louis
was up 5.1 percent and Kansas City rose 2.4 percent. San Antonio was up 4.4 percent, Houston was up 3.6 percent,
Dallas/Fort Worth gained 3.0 percent and Austin was flat (0.0 percent). Oklahoma City rose 4.7 percent and Tulsa
gained 2.4 percent.
The Mid-Atlantic rose 3.3 percent, with Pennsylvania and Maryland up 4.0 percent, Virginia up 1.5 percent and New
Jersey up 1.3 percent. The District of Columbia was up 3.1 percent. Philadelphia was up 3.2 percent, Pittsburgh was
down 0.4 percent and Baltimore rose 4.4 percent.
TeleCheck's index is compiled on a calendar basis and is based on the total sales volume of check-writing consumers
at a broad cross-section of retailers. Figures are not adjusted for inflation. In 1997, TeleCheck authorized over $98.3
billion in checks and processed more than 1.9 billion check inquiries.
NOTE: The TeleCheck logo and retail sales figures can be downloaded from the TeleCheck web site at
telecheck.com or from PR Newswire and NewsCom.
Atlanta-based First Data Corporation (NYSE: FDC - news) is a global leader in payment services, electronic
commerce and information management products and services. First Data and its principal operating units process the
information that allows millions of consumers to pay for goods and services by credit, debit or stored value card at
the point of sale or over the Internet; by check or wire money. For more information about First Data, please visit the
Company on the Internet at firstdatacorp.com.
Dr. William Ford holds the Weatherford Chair of Finance at Middle Tennessee State University. Earlier in his career
he was president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and served on former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker's Federal
Open Market Committee.
NOVEMBER 1998
NATIONAL 4.4%
SOUTHEAST 4.8% WEST 4.0% MIDWEST 6.7%
Florida 3.5% Arizona 5.3% Illinois 6.4%
Miami/Ft. Lauderdale 3.3% Phoenix 5.7% Chicago 3.5%
Orlando 2.8% California 3.7% Michigan 2.5%
Tampa 6.7% Bay Area -3.0% Detroit 1.1%
Louisiana 10.6% Los Angeles 4.7% Minnesota 6.7%
New Orleans 14.8% San Diego -0.1% Minneapolis/
St. Paul 6.8%
Georgia 1.8% Oregon 2.3% Wisconsin 4.7%
Atlanta 1.5% Portland 4.3% Milwaukee 4.0%
Tennessee 5.9% Washington 3.3% Ohio 6.0%
Memphis 2.3% Seattle 5.4% Cleveland 6.7%
Nashville 4.0% Colorado 15.2%
The Carolinas 4.6% Denver 10.5% MID-ATLANTIC 3.3%
Hawaii 1.2% District of
Columbia 3.1%
SOUTHWEST 3.4% Pennsylvania 4.0%
Texas 2.5% NORTHEAST 3.4% Philadelphia3.2%
Austin 0.0% Massachusetts 1.9% Pittsburgh 0.4%
Dallas/Ft. Worth 3.0% Boston 2.3% New Jersey 1.3%
Houston 3.6% New York 5.3% Virginia 1.5%
San Antonio 4.4% New York City 5.8% Maryland 4.0%
Missouri 4.8% Baltimore 4.4%
Kansas City 2.4%
St. Louis 5.1%
Oklahoma 3.1%
Oklahoma City 4.7%
Tulsa 2.4%
SOURCE: TeleCheck Services, Inc.
More Quotes and News:
First Data Corp (NYSE:FDC - news)
Related News Categories: banking, computers, retail |
