These results seemingly reflect the previous report on idle merchant ships parked quietly near the Singapore coast. – Ilene
See What They Hide (Retail Results)
Courtesy of Karl Denninger, The Market Ticker
Note the difference here – first, Bloomberg and "the pump" yesterday:
Dec. 2 (Bloomberg) — U.S. retail sales may have risen for the third straight month in November as purchases during the Black Friday weekend propped up holiday sales, a research firm said.
The article goes on to put a "bullish spin" on "expectations."
Ok, so the truth? Out this morning – from Reuters, and nowhere to be found on Bloomberg:
CHICAGO (Reuters) – Several U.S. retailers posted weaker-than-expected sales for November, getting the key holiday season off to a sluggish start as consumers worried about the economy and double-digit unemployment.
Eight of the 11 retailers that reported by early Thursday missed estimates, including Costco Wholesale Corp, Children’s Place, Walgreen Co and Hot Topic Inc, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Oh, that includes Black Friday, of course, since it is in November.
Gee, Bloomberg, where’s the story on the actual reported results, now that they’re out? Scooped by Reuters for more than two hours?
Or are you simply not going to report the actual results at all?
CNBS, surprisingly, is actually talking about it this morning. You’d think that the markets would pay some attention to this on a broad (and not just store-specific) basis, since in point of fact if the consumer is not spending, the economy, on a broad basis, will not be recovering either.
Something to think about.
