Sales Up 14% In Year-Ending Week in the US

Retail sales jumped 14% in the last full week of December, helped by post-holiday discounts and the redemption of gift cards.

 The report by ShopperTrak RCT added that retail traffic rose
7% year-on-year during the week ended December 29. However, both sales and
traffic were down from the pre-Christmas week, with sales down nearly 18% traffic
down 8%. The fall was partly due to one less shopping day (Christmas Day) in
the week ended Dec. 29.
ShopperTrak said it still expects total holiday season sales, defined as sales
in November and December, to rise 3.6% year-on-year. SpendingPulse, a report by
MasterCard Advisors, which measures the period from the Friday after
Thanksgiving through midnight December 24, said holiday sales rose 3.6%
year-on-year.