Mastercard advisors wants to make Retail Holiday sales look good?

crgarcia · Dec 28, 2009

They say Holiday retail sales went up 3.6%.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20091228/bs_nm/us_holidaysales_spendingpulse_3

If you watch your neighbors, or your local shopping mall; it is clear that real figures really went DOWN big.

Anything can be proven or disproven trough statistics manipulation.

Mastercard desperately wants to show the economy as strong, so that they don't get (even) more people defaulting on their credit cards?

spades434 · Dec 28, 2009

If you want to know about sales, all u gotta do is go to WMT..largest retailer in the world. Based on conversations with employees there, it was a HORRIBLE holiday season. Every time I went in, the parking lots were about normal depending on the pay periods of folks. And the biggest category purchased....

GROCERIES.

When people can't afford to shop at WMT, with the exception of buying food, things are bad.

Scataphagos · Dec 28, 2009

Quote from spades434:

If you want to know about sales, all u gotta do is go to WMT..largest retailer in the world. Based on conversations with employees there, it was a HORRIBLE holiday season. Every time I went in, the parking lots were about normal depending on the pay periods of folks. And the biggest category purchased....

GROCERIES.

When people can't afford to shop at WMT, with the exception of buying food, things are bad.

Even local Costco claimed that while foot traffic was up, the average check-out ticket was smaller.

mastertrader12 · Dec 28, 2009

Even the day after return lines were less than minimal. The proof is there foe all to see.

S2007S · Dec 28, 2009

Every single year this number is spun around some way or another to look positive, it seems to always work.

Retail numbers aren't out till Jan 7th.

spades434 · Dec 28, 2009

And regarding MA and V, keep in mind that more and more people are using debit cards for just about every previous cash transaction. Outstanding credit has declined quite a bit, so I'm not sure how'd you factor in the typical credit card usage as well.

nazzdack · Dec 29, 2009

Quote from spades434:
If you want to know about sales, all u gotta do is.....

1) Is it possible that people upgraded the "quality" of their spending up and away from mass-market retailers?
2) Have gift cards been properly accounted for?
3) Are people spending more "cash" instead of "plastic" nowadays?

Eliot Hosewater · Dec 29, 2009

States have been reporting sales tax revenues have been off 10-20-30% for most of the year. How can retail not be cratering?

ralph00 · Dec 29, 2009

Online sales were way up. They account for a small % of total retail sales (getting larger every year), but they were way up.

I was scurrying about town on Xmas eve looking for a specific toy for my kids. Went into the local WMT and the toy aisle was nearly empty. Sales must have been WAY stronger than they expected.

crgarcia · Dec 29, 2009

Quote from spades434:

If you want to know about sales, all u gotta do is go to WMT..largest retailer in the world. Based on conversations with employees there, it was a HORRIBLE holiday season. Every time I went in, the parking lots were about normal depending on the pay periods of folks. And the biggest category purchased....

GROCERIES.

When people can't afford to shop at WMT, with the exception of buying food, things are bad.

Nice indicator.