Gift-Card Sales Rise More Than Forecast, Boost US Retailers
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US retailers holiday gift-card sales may have risen to more than $20 billion, topping forecasts and boosting after-Christmas shopping at stores after a lackluster holiday season.
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Shoppers across America have millions of gift cards tucked away in envelopes, drawers and wallets. And some of the nation's largest retailers are profiting as a result.
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U.S. consumers spent heartily in  July on goods ranging from cars to electronics as sales at  retail stores rose a greater-than-expected 1.4 percent, a  government report on Friday showed.
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Retailers rebounded from their disappointing holiday season as shoppers redeemed gift cards to buy winter and spring merchandise.
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U.S. chain store retail sales rose a  bit in the latest week due to post-Christmas shopping, a report  said on Tuesday.
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Shoppers, encouraged by cooler temperatures and easing gasoline prices, went on a shopping spree in September, resulting in better-than-expected gains for many merchants and lifting the industry's spirits in advance of the holiday season.
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US retail sales increased by 0.1 percent in November, the Commerce Department said on Monday, slightly stronger than expectations, while the previous month was revised sharply higher.
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world&#39;s largest retailer, said December sales at US stores open at least a year are rising within its forecast as shoppers stepped up holiday spending.
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The news was good for many retailers over the holiday weekend as enthusiastic consumers took to stores in droves on Black Friday and bought at a higher rate than last year.
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U.S. stocks opened higher on Friday,  lifted by a government report that showed U.S. September retail  sales rose higher-than-expected.
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U.S. retail sales jumped a more-than-expected 1.2 percent in December, but first-time jobless claims posted a surprise climb and import prices dipped more than anticipated, government reports showed on Thursday.
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U.S. chain store retail sales rose in  the latest week as a holiday weekend gave Americans more time  to shop, a report said on Tuesday.
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U.S. specialty apparel retailers saw  sales rise 3.6 percent in holiday shopping, at the lower-end of  expectations, according to data released on Tuesday by  SpendingPulse.
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With the holiday season now behind us, the nation is awash in gift cards, as stores sold many more in 2007 than they did the year prior.
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As the all-important holiday shopping season moved into its final frenzy, US consumer sentiment rose more than expected, according to a report Thursday.
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Last-minute Christmas shoppers helped lift this month&#39;s retail sales, but some analysts still are concerned that Americans didn&#39;t spend enough to give chain stores the boost they had requested from Santa.
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Sales at retailers posted a much stronger-than-expected 1.2 percent rise in November, government data showed on Thursday, as holiday shoppers coped with high energy costs and the fallout from a housing slump.