Early, Late-Season Shoppers Lift Holiday Sales

New figures show a healthy increase in holiday sales this year, thanks to shoppers who turned out right after Thanksgiving and those who waited until the last minute.

The research firm ShopperTrak says spending rose 4.1 percent in November over last year, and 4.7 percent from Dec. 1 to Christmas Eve. A 4 percent increase is considered a successful season.

ShopperTrak says sales on the day after Thanksgiving were up 6.6 percent from last year. And it estimates that total retail revenue for the week that ended Dec. 24 rose 14.8 percent compared with a year ago.

But in between Black Friday and the second half of December, shoppers took a breather.

Michael Niemira, chief economist with the International Council of Shopping Centers, says the ups and downs were dramatic this year, with a deeper-than usual lull following Black Friday.

He says the two weeks after Thanksgiving weekend showed the biggest percentage sales decline since 2000, but during the final two weeks before Christmas, sales surged by the highest rate since 2005.

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