U.S. retail sales rose 3.5 percent during the holiday season this year, helped by deep discounts at malls and purchases of children’s apparel and jewelry, MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse said.
"It was actually a Merry Christmas for retailers," Sarah Quinlan, senior vice president at MasterCard Advisors, told Reuters, adding jewelry was the best-performing category.
Analysts have called the 2013 holiday season as the most competitive since the recession in 2008, as many Americans battle stagnant wages, higher taxes and the impact from the government shutdown.
Retailers, in response, have slashed prices and used other promotions to lure customers in a season that typically generates 30 percent of sales and 40 percent of profits.
The National Retail Federation in October forecast sales for the months of November and December to marginally increase 3.9 percent to $602.1 billion, from 2012's actual 3.5 percent growth.
Olga Patseva, Editor in Chief of the American Bureau, Rough&Polished
