Christmas shopping

he nation's retailers, reduced prices on Wednesday, hoping that a post Christmas shopping holiday rush rescue turnover, so far, also have modest expectations. They expect, especially for the legions of buyers armed with gift cards in a snap prices and buy a new product, just click "on the shelves.

Retailers in recent years have received a lot to catch Bounce discounts at the clearance, and they are in the position of hoping that the prices of hunting by consumers came at the end. Gift Cards are not registered until they pay Shopper.

However, investors are more pessimistic about this holiday season and the financial well-being of consumers in difficult economic circumstances. The share of most retailers fell Wednesday.

"Shoppers think twice what they are buying," said Jennifer Schwarz, the president of Jennifer Black & Associates, a firm Equity Research in Lake Oswego, Ore.. "It's a feeling of fear."

Black, along with other analysts, towers centers in New Jersey and Oregon, the finding that the gift cards buyer remained stingy on Wednesday, focusing on the cost bids, despite charges merchants.

"My son has a gift tickets for clothing, and I work with the birds, I thought, whereas most of my money," says Susan Depetris, loading discounted pants and pullover in a caddy Kohl's, Medford, Mass. They do not plan to search for gifts for all the others. She had only one person in the head, while their purchases -.

The International Council of Shopping Centers said Wednesday that same-store sales, sale or other companies to open at least one year during the period between the months of November and December, are already in the next fair below expectations for a slim 2.5% gain If she told a post - Christmas protzen purchase, the deficit of deleting them. The contrast prelude to an evaluation of its chief economist, Michael P. Niemira, who predicts that, after the weekend off at least of projected revenues could satisfy.

Target Corp. warned late Monday that its sales decline could even store for the month of December. Pending a large runway revealed consumer spending, which MasterCard Advisors - an industry credit cards of the company - the estimates for expenditure and cash cheques, Tuesday reported an increase of 3 .6 percent from November 23 until December 24, the low end of expectations. Compared with 6.6 percent of profits in the period of the previous year. Without gas purchases, sales rose only 2.4 percent of holiday.

"The ingredients were not because for a blockbuster of the season," said Michael McNamara, vice president, research and analysis of MasterCard Advisors. "And retailers have, in many ways, mostly in the off season, they could, on the basis of the environment."

The increase in oil prices, an escalation of the crisis of credit and a body falling Shopper caution, a trend that is reflected in a weakening of the growth in sales throughout the year, said McNamara. Shoppers stores at the beginning of the season, but has kept for the most part by offering in December to return to the charge for one minute spending spree when the prices are even better.

To encourage businesses, recorded earlier were with aggressive discounting, increasing concern over the profits of retailers in this decisive phase. The Christmas season accounts for 30 percent of the annual business sales. For sellers of toys, holiday business as much as 50 percent.

A more accurate census of retailers, as it will not be given arrive until at least January 10th, for the major retailers report same-store sales for the month of December. Traders are planned for the fourth quarter to report earnings in February.

The biggest losers are the women who are already among the lowest in the country and see their gains hardest hit, analysts said. But there are signs that business could softening luxury. At Houston's upscale Galleria Mall, the luxury MM-store Bernini was empty, while 70 percent of the biggest characters.

"People are spending less, and they are not really selective," said the seller McMakin Cleveland, he called the worst season of his three years Bernini.

In addition, leather jackets $ 995 marked down to $ 299 and $ 595 Blazer is sold for $ 179 not to spark optimism.

"We have never marked this stuff down low," said McMakin. "We should first try to sell them."

Woes dealer may be good news for buyers, who are not bombarded with more generous discounts in the Christmas season, after one year ago, industry officials said. Susan Valentine, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Mall operators Macerich Co. Said discounts on leave, the decor has reached 75 percent during the last year at this time, the scenery has been reduced by up to 60 percent. Accordingly, the undergarment, reduced to 70 percent, during the past year, the price cuts of about 50 percent.

On a Kohl's Corp. store in Lisbon, Conn., Maggie Challinor planned to buy a coat for Christmas, she received the card from her husband. Gift Cards contributed to the family to keep its budget for Christmas, she said. "We spent less. Really We distribution."

Barbara Gagne, in the same Kohl's, returned two pair of pants and credit to buy a blouse marked $ 55 to $ 11.

"I am here for the prices," she said.

The post-Christmas has become important with the growing popularity of gift cards. According to the National Retail Federation, consumers expect a total of 26.3 billion in gift cards this holiday time, 42 percent of the $ 18.5 billion in the year 2005.

ShopperTrak RCT Corp. said that the week after Christmas accounts for about 16 percent of the total distribution of holidays.

Associated Press Writers Susan Haigh, in Lisbon, Conn., Dale Wetzel Bismarck, ND Deanna Martin in Indianapolis and Melissa Trujillo in Boston, and Liz Austin Peterson in Houston contributed to this report.

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