Econoday Report: Redbook December 15, 2009

2009 Economic Calendar

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Redbook

Released on 12/15/2009 8:55:00 AM For wk12/12, 2009

	Prior	Actual
Store Sales Y/Y change	1.2 %	1.5 %

Highlights
Sales rose slightly in the Dec. 12 shopping week, according to Redbook's same-store sales tally that shows a plus 1.5 percent year-on-year rate, up from a plus 1.2 percent rate in the prior week. The report said falling temperatures are giving a lift to seasonal goods, which is good timing for the holiday total. The report, like others, says consumers have been procrastinating more than ever this year and that discount stores are doing especially well.

Definition
A weekly measure of sales at chain stores, discounters, and department stores. It is a less consistent indicator of retail sales than the weekly ICSC index. It is also calculated differently than other indicators. For instance, figures for the first week of the month are compared with the average for the entire previous month. When two weeks are available, then these are compared with the average for the previous month, and so on. It might be more useful to compare year-over-year figures since these are indeed compared to the comparable week a year ago. This index is correlated with the general merchandise portion of retail sales covering only about 10 percent of total retail sales. Why Investors Care

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