Season's Sale Spree Reported Biggest in Nearly a Decade: U.S. Retailers Report Merry Sales Spree
An unexpected Christmas shopping spree gave merchants their biggest Christmas sales gains in nearly a decade, providing new evidence that the United States is rapidly recovering from last yearÛªs recession.</br></br>Sears, Roebuck & Co., the nationÛªs biggest retailer, reported its December sales jumped 17.5 percent and virtually all other big chains reported double digit sales gainsÛÓdespite December storms that kept some shoppers at home.</br></br>ÛÏThis was the best Christmas in eight to 10 years,Û said Terence J. McEvoy, an analyst who follows retailing for Dean Witter Reynolds Inc. ÛÏThe question is how much better it would have been if the weather had been decent.Û</br></br>In the Washington area, sales gains were as ÛÏspectacularÛ as in the rest of the nation, said an official with the Greater Washington Board of Trade, which collects confidential sales figures from local stores. ÛÏSome stores posted 20 percent increases and many were in the 15-to-20 percent range. I havenÛªt found anybody who was below the 10 percent range,Û the official said.</br></br>ÛÏEven more significant, there hasnÛªt been any post-Christmas letdown. Customers are still in the store buying and sales have continued very strong,Û he added.