Christmas Shopping 2019: Holiday Retail Sales Rise By 3.4% This Year

Data from Mastercard SpendingPulse shows that U.S. retail sales grew by 3.4% this holiday season, with online shopping rising by 18.8% over 2018. The gap between Thanksgiving and Christmas was smaller this year, meaning that consumers might have chosen to do their shopping online as they were more pressed for time.

“E-commerce sales hit a record high this year with more people doing their holiday shopping online,” Steve Sadove, a senior adviser for Mastercard said. “Due to a later than usual Thanksgiving holiday, we saw retailers offering omnichannel sales earlier in the season, meeting consumers’ demand for the best deals across all channels and devices.”

The Mastercard report tracks shopping between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24. Department stores saw overall sales decrease by 1.8%. Sears, Forever 21, and Charlotte Russe are just some of the retailers closing stores this year, with one major reason being the rise of online shopping.

A report done by Credit Suisse in 2017 said that 20% to 25% of malls will close by 2022, as big retailers go out of business.

Strong holiday shopping sales could be a reflection of the U.S. economy, with GDP growing by a modest 1.9% in the third quarter, defying recession fears.