Shoppers eyeing fiscal cliff, storms sat on their wallets
(NEWSER) – With Christmas officially in the rearview, the first snapshot of holiday spending is rolling in and the picture isn't too pretty: In the two months leading up to Christmas, sales of popular gift items like electronics and apparel grew only .7%—a measly increase well below analysts' expectation of 3% or 4%, and far worse than the 4% to 5% we saw around the same time last year. In fact, it's the worst year-over-year growth since 2008, when the recession began, reports the AP. Even online shopping was down, posting only 8.4% growth since late October, far lower than the 15% to 17% seen in the 18 months before the holiday.
Read more: Newser
