Last summer's slew of toy recalls has not faded from U.S. consumers' minds
The holiday shopping home stretch run starts this weekend, and U.S. retailers hope that dilly-dallying shoppers are ready to open up their wallets and get serious about spending. The 10 days before Christmas are the busiest of the season, with as much as 40 percent of total holiday sales coming then, according to analysts from the Telsey Advisory Group.
Nearly 50 years after they topped the charts with a novelty Christmas song, squeaky-voiced chipmunks Alvin, Simon and Theodore return this holiday season in a computer-animated film with a modern twist.
It's easy to let your budget go out of control during the holidays. Be smart...
Some retailers reported stronger-than-expected November sales on Thursday, helped by a post-Thanksgiving rush and holiday discounts, but notable misses by others and a shift in the retail calendar left an unclear picture of the strength of the key holiday season.
The holiday tug-of-war is under way. U.S. retailers want to rack up sales now, not later. Consumers, however, are resisting, playing the waiting game for bigger discounts closer to Christmas. To win the battle, many retailers are enticing shoppers with so-called limited-time sales, hoping a deadline will convince them to spend money now -- and help stores avoid profit-crunching price cuts later in the season.
Eager shoppers stormed malls and stores across the country on Friday to snap up the early-bird specials that mark Black Friday, the first official day of the U.S. holiday shopping season. While shoppers were looking for giveaways and discounts, analysts and investors were watching for signs of consumer strength or weakness.
Will consumers’ expectations about a slightly downcast holiday shopping season turn into reality? With the Thanksgiving holiday over, shoppers are descending into stores today to find the best deals as the busiest time of the year kicks off for retailers.
There was no doubt that for the many baby-boomer parents in attendance, the title character of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical emerges as a surprisingly sympathetic figure.
Gauging retail success or failure for the holidays is an increasingly difficult, and often unreliable, endeavor.
Six in 10 U.S. consumers say a recession is likely in the next three to six months, a new survey on holiday spending said on Wednesday. A telephone survey found 45.7 percent of 1,000 respondents say a recession is somewhat likely, 14.3 percent said very likely and Forty percent said a recession was not likely
The chief executive officer of Wal-Mart Stores Inc said on Wednesday that he is optimistic about the Christmas season.
Major handset vendors have much more to gain than to lose from the buzz Apple Inc's coveted iPhone will create when it arrives in European stores for the key shopping season ahead of Christmas.
For those feeling left out in the pre-Christmas sales rush, there is no need to worry. As the New Year approaches, stores are still hungry for customers looking for a deal.
A new study released on Thursday shows that U.S consumers have spent almost 20 percent more on gifts so far this year compared to the same period last year. Continued gift spending is expected to reach over $2,250 this year once the Christmas season is in full swing.
Video games retailer Game Group said on Tuesday it was confident its full year result would be better than last year despite a delay in the launch of Sony Corp.'s Playstation 3.
High and volatile prices will continue to scare physical gold buyers in most parts of the world, but some markets such as China and Japan will remain strong, bullion dealers said.
