According to a recent study by Bloomberg, U.S. retail sales rose for the 13^th straight week in early December as deep discounts and holiday promotions encouraged consumers to spend.

Stores which have been open for at least a year witnessed a 2.6 percent increase in sales from a year ago, said the International Council of Shopping Centers and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., in a recent statement. However, speculation remains that consumers are waiting to make their purchases, possibly causing “…a last-minute surge in holiday-gift searching in the final days ahead of Christmas,” said Michael Niemira, chief economist of ICSC.

With the national unemployment rate reaching a 26-year high of 10.2 percent this October, retailers are hopeful that an slightly improving labor market will spur consumers to spend in the last month of the holiday shopping season. Traditionally, this period accounts for one-third of annual revenue. According to Neimira, total sales could show a slightly better increase (2%) percent this December, than the one-percent improvement predicted a year ago. With consumer spending making up more than two-thirds of the U.S. economy, comparable-store sales will be considered the strongest measure of results.

via  Inyoung Hwang @ Bloomberg