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Strategies & Market Trends : VOLTAIRE'S PORCH-MODERATED -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: RR who wrote (45244)	12/17/2001 1:22:45 PM
From: Sully-	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 65232

U.S.shoppers keep wallets shut ahead of Xmas (UPDATE: Recasts with analysts comment, background, adds byline) By Ellis Mnyandu NEW YORK, Dec 17 (Reuters) - American shoppers again proved picky in their spending over the weekend, ignoring even some of the last-minute pre-Christmas specials on apparel and other luxury items, as worries over the faltering U.S. economy continued to weigh on sentiment. Federated Department Stores Inc. (NYSE:FD - news), parent of the Macy's and Bloomingdale's chains, reported in its recorded weekly sales update that sales at its stores in the third week following Thanksgiving were weak. The retailer added that the sales trend was still in line with its forecasts for monthly same-store sales to decrease 11 percent to 14 percent. Analysts and economists said Federated's comment pointed to continued reluctance by shoppers to commit themselves to a shopping spree on items they deem nonessential despite the fact that Christmas was getting closer. ``I don't expect that there will be a late holiday surge in spending by consumers in the light of the continuing fallout in unemployment,'' Frank Badillo, senior retail economist at Retail Forward, said. ``I think shoppers are going to remain cautious and sales are going to remain weak,'' Badillo added. Discounter Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE:WMT - news) said while merchandise like Christmas trees and lights sold well in the Dec. 8-14 week, its comparable store sales at its discount stores had also trended ``slightly below plan.'' It added, however, that the company was still on course to achieve a monthly same-store sales increase of 4 percent. Tom Williams, a Wal-Mart spokesman, could not give details about store traffic patterns at its stores this past weekend but said the retailer expects some last-minute rush to boost sales. Wal-Mart is among main U.S. discount chains that are benefiting from shoppers' new-found frugality as demand for basic items like food and household cleaning chemicals has continued despite consumer edginess. Carl Steidtmann, Deloitte Research chief economist, however, said most retailers, particularly those in apparel, were headed for a bad Christmas. Some analysts expect this holiday season to be the worst in a decade. ``I think we are going to see a mediocre Christmas. It's way too late (for anything) to bail out what is going to be an awful season for most apparel retailers,'' he said. biz.yahoo.com