Gloomy retail sales drag stock market down
For the stock market, this week hasn’t been the most wonderful time of the year.
U.S. stocks fell Wednesday for the third trading day in a row. Disappointing holiday sales weighed heavy on retail companies, and the unwelcome “fiscal cliff” package of higher taxes and lower government spending loomed nearer.
Stores look to week after Christmas for sales
Bargain-hungry Americans will need to go on a post-Christmas spending binge to salvage this holiday shopping season.
October sales tax receipts down $14K from 2011
For the second month in a row, sales tax receipts are down for Columbus. According to Chief Financial Officer Mike Bernsen, the city’s sales tax check for the month of December is down almost $14,000 from December 2011.
Holiday sales expected to rise 4.1 percent
Americans are expected to spend more during what’s traditionally the busiest shopping season of the year, but they’re not exactly ready to shop ’til they drop like they have been in the past two years.