US holiday shopping trends mixed for chemicals

26 November 2007 20:54 [Source: ICIS news]

Holiday shopping sends mixed signals HOUSTON (ICIS news)--The start of the US shopping season gave mixed signals concerning demand for chemicals, an economist with the American Chemistry Council (ACC) said on Monday.

The Friday after US Thanksgiving marks the start of the country's holiday shopping season, when consumers spend billions on gifts. The day makes up 4.5-5% of all holiday sales, according to ShopperTrak, a firm that tracks retail statistics.

Holiday gifts contain a variety of chemicals, including polyethylene (PE) in packaging, flame retardants in electronics and polycarbonate in compact discs and DVDs.

Although most of the retail products were made months ago, their sales still has an indirect effect on the chemical industry, said Kevin Swift, chief economist for the ACC.

If retailers sell fewer products, they will place fewer orders for goods, lowering demand for chemicals, Swift said.

So far, it was unclear whether rising energy prices and US credit woes will drag down holiday spending, he said. "The experts really don't know at this point."

Retail sales on Friday and Saturday reached $16.4bn (€11.0bn), up 7.2% from the same time last year, ShopperTrak said. Foot traffic on Friday was up 6.5% when compared with 2006.

However, each shopper spent an average of $347.44 during the weekend, down 3.5% from the same time last year, according to the National Retail Federation.

"This year consumers were focused on lower priced door busters like digital photo frames, laptops and cashmere sweaters," according to a statement issued by Tracy Mullin, president of the federation.

Nonetheless, the federation said more than 147m consumers went shopping during the weekend, up 4.8% from last year. The group continues to project that holiday sales will rise 4.0% this year to $474.5bn.

"Though [the] weekend was a complete success for many retailers, the results of the holiday season won't be determined until the last two weeks of December," Mullin said in the statement.

ShopperTrak's co-founder, Bill Martin, said he expects that shoppers will continue to spend money, despite the economic pressures in the US.

"Although retailers need to remain cautious, the Black Friday [the day after Thansgiving, which marks the start of the Christmas shopping season] outpouring should have them breathing a sigh of relief, and they will be paying close attention to see if consumers continue this strong shopping pace throughout the holiday season," Martin said in a statement.

($1.00 = €0.67)

By: Al Greenwood
+1 713 525 2653

< previous article(ICIS Chemical Business podcast November 2, 2009)

For the latest chemical news, data and analysis that directly impacts your business sign up for a free trial to ICIS news - the breaking online news service for the global chemical industry.

Get the facts and analysis behind the headlines from our market leading weekly magazine: sign up to a free trial to ICIS Chemical Business.

Printer Friendly