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Post by unlawflcombatnt on May 10, 2007 17:41:39 GMT -6
Retailers post weak April salesSales by retail stores had one of their worst months ever in April. Though analysts had expected April retail sales to be be "disappointing," they were even worse than expected. The UBS-International Council of Shopping Centers sales tally of 53 stores posted its biggest ever recorded decline. The -2.4% decline was the worst since these statistics started being recorded in 1970. Almost all stores posted declines in same store sales. Wal-Mart reported a - 3.5% decline, it's worst month ever recorded. The list of losers was extensive. Target posted a -6.1% decline in same-store sales. Federated, which controls both Macy's and Bloomingdale's, reported a -2.2 decline in same-store sales. Penney's same-store sales declined -4.7%, far more than the -0.8% decline predicted. Gap's same-store sales declined a whopping -16%, over twice as much as the predicted -7.1% predicted. Limited Brands same-store sales declined -1%, in contrast to the +1% gain predicted. Abercrombie & Fitch's same-store sales declined a whopping -15%, more than 3 times the -4.7% predicted. This information can be found in the Yahoo News article Retailers post weak April sales
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Post by blueneck on May 11, 2007 4:26:29 GMT -6
So many factors here. The retail analysts are blaming gas prices. There is some truth to that, but it is only one piece of the puzzle.
The larger piece is the housing bust. Since the "home ATM" is cashed out, there is less to fuel the rampant consumerism, as well as less demand for home furnishings, appliances and other household goods.
Some stores like Walmart and Target may have saturated their markets. In some communities there is a Walmart store for every 50000 people. seems like a Walmart and Target are popping up on every street corner, just like Walgreens and CVS. I am waiting for that bubble to burst as well, when these pharmacy giants finally overextend themselves.
I would like to think that people are finally getting wise to the unfair labor practices and reliance on offshored chinese products at Walmart as part of the puzzle and rejecting it, while I admit it has to be a small piece of the puzzle at this point. When will people understand that that they are shopping themselves out of a job every time they make a Walmart purchase?
I find it interesting that even some of the upscale stores like Abercrombe are hurting as bad as they are.
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Post by unlawflcombatnt on May 11, 2007 22:14:39 GMT -6
So many factors here. The retail analysts are blaming gas prices. There is some truth to that, but it is only one piece of the puzzle. The larger piece is the housing bust. Since the "home ATM" is cashed out, there is less to fuel the rampant consumerism, as well as less demand for home furnishings, appliances and other household goods.... I agree that the Housing Bubble collapse is at the heart of it. Gas prices are only a minor contributor, but provide an excellent excuse that Corporate plutocrats can espouse. The simple reason is that American consumers are running out of money to spend, due both to declining real wages and declining ability to withdraw and spend home equity. Meanwhile, Corporate America and big business are cutting their labor force, causing a still further decline in aggregate American labor income, resulting in further declines in spendable consumer wealth. Economist Nouriel Roubini is now predicting a decline in the reported 1.3% 1st quarter GDP to only 0.7%. There is no industry or sector that is growing enough to maintain our economy. We're heading for a recession, and maybe even a depression. The current stock market bubble is exactly like the one that preceded the Great Depression. It's just a matter of time before it all comes tumbling down.
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Post by unlawflcombatnt on May 22, 2007 23:40:38 GMT -6
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