Consumer Confidence Continues to Rebound….

Nov. 30, 2010 - PRLog -- November 30th, 2010 Andover Massachusetts – Well I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoyed the holiday with family and friends. As most of you know, the Friday after Thanksgiving as well as the Monday after are both considered huge shopping days for Americans and both days were followed closely by economists to see where the American consumer stands heading into the crucial Holiday shopping season. Thankfully, the data so far suggests that consumer spending rebounded strongly from last years lows and data released today suggests consumer confidence continues to rise as the job market improves and spending by consumers continues to rebound after the past two years of disappointing sales activity.

To begin with, Black Friday retail numbers were strong across the board as consumers not only shopped more but also purchased more discretionary items such as jewelry and high tech entertainment products. Overall spending on Friday increased .3% compared to 2009 while traffic at stores nationwide increased by 2.2%. For the weekend as a whole, 212 million Americans visited stores between Friday and Sunday; this is up from 195 million the year before. Average spending also increased by $22 to $365. Perhaps the most encouraging sign for retailers and economists nationwide is the continued surge in online shopping. Overall online spending is up 13% compared to last year, which is a much higher growth rate than shopping in general. What this means for retailers for the next 30 days is that while store numbers may not increase as much as expected, online sales could more than make up for any weakness in traffic numbers retailers could face.

What is driving all of these positive numbers over the past two weeks? Consumer confidence in the economy is improving and reached a new 5 month high in November. It rose 5 points since October which is double what was expected. This confidence boost is driven by a multitude of factors including the job market, Wall Street, as well as the political changes that have occurred in the country since early November. Wall Street continues to see strong corporate profits which have boosted the stock market above 11,000 again. This has improved the retirement outlook for millions of Americans which has allowed them to be more willing to spend their hard earned cash on consumer goods again. The job market is also improving as most experts are predicting a rebound in corporate hiring in 2011 due to the continued strong results being achieved this year. Politically, the election of a republican majority in the house as well as a strong republican minority in the senate should slow down any new regulations or laws that are being debated. Generally, the economy performs best when Washington does the least, so this political gridlock should lead to less regulations coming out of Washington and thus more certainty for businesses to grow and expand their operations over the next 12 months.

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