Bloomberg Writes: Wal-Mart Touts $98 TV in Weakest Holiday Season Since ’09

U.S. retailers are discounting earlier than ever as they brace for the weakest holiday shopping season since 2009. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is dangling a 32-inch flat-screen TV for $98, down from $148 last year. Sears Holdings Corp. has waived layaway fees and its Kmart chain is introducing a rent-to-own program. More than a dozen retailers are opening earlier, or for the first time, on Thanksgiving Day. Among the attention-grabbing stunts: a $1 million jackpot for one of the first shoppers to visit Gap Inc.’s Old Navy chain on Black Friday.

Faced with wary shoppers and a shorter holiday season, retailers are piling on deals as they jockey for market share during the most important sales period of the year. For the fourth year in a row, disposable incomes in 2013 have only inched up. As result, low-income Americans will again have a less-merry season than affluent consumers, who are more flush thanks in part to surging stock markets

Just as I have predicted in my previous post about 6 weeks ago “Who Else Wants To Cancel Christmas?” this Christmas retail shopping season will be a terrible one.

The question is why? After all, Ben Bernanke, Janet Yellen, President Obama are all claiming the economy is doing better, the unemployment rate is going down and the real estate sector has made a full recovery. Plus, the stock market is hitting all time highs and if you listen to financial media the stock market is ready to go up another 50% in 2014. So, what gives? How come no one feels it.

It’s very simple. The above mentioned things are merely an illusion. The average American family hasn’t benefited from any of those things. The financial bailout has been designed to bail out financial institutions and to make the rich richer by offering a select few access to FREE credit to speculate with. Credit that largely has been unavailable to average Americans. Basically it is an unsustainable financial bubble that will blow up in 2014.

I really hate Christmas, but I know that many people love it. So, here is my advice. First, wait for as long as you can to buy Christmas gifts this year. There will be huge discounts as we get closer to that MAGICAL f&#*ing day. Second, enjoy it this year. The Christmas of 2014-2017 will be terrible after the bear market feasts on the economy.

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Sorry. Christmas Has Been Officially Cancelled.

Bloomberg Writes: Wal-Mart Cutting Orders as Unsold Merchandise Piles Up

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) is cutting orders it places with suppliers this quarter and next to address rising inventory the company flagged in last month’s earnings report.

Last week, an ordering manager at the company’s Bentonville, Arkansas, headquarters described the pullback in an e-mail to a supplier, who said others got similar messages. “We are looking at reducing inventory for Q3 and Q4,” said the Sept. 17 e-mail, which was reviewed by Bloomberg News.

U.S. inventory growth at Wal-Mart outstripped sales gains in the second quarter at a faster rate than at the retailer’s biggest rivals. Merchandise has been piling up because consumers have been spending less freely than Wal-Mart projected, and the company has forfeited some sales because it doesn’t have enough workers in stores to keep shelves adequately stocked.

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I really, really, really hate Christmas. Nothing turns me off more than seeing a beautiful holiday turned into Consumer Olympics where the sports of choice are….

Trampling your fellow human beings to death at Walmart a day after Thanksgiving because of $149 flat screen TVs.
Trying to please everyone you know by buying them worthless and meaningless crap.
Crazy expectations that others place on you and so forth.

In short, don’t expect any gifts from me. Not even a Christmas card. Yes, I am a Grinch, but I am a nice Grinch with some very valuable information that will save you a lot of money.

As the article above indicates Walmart has an inventory problem. However, I guarantee you that it’s not only Walmart. It is everyone. Due to structural and economic issues that I talk about on this blog, retailers should expect their holiday shopping season to be miserable at best. And here is why I am about to save you a lot of money.

Wait for as long as you can this Holiday Season before buying Christmas gifts. The longer you wait the deeper the discounts will be. I have a feeling that most retailers will be close to giving stuff away by the time Christmas comes around this year. As such, I just saved you a lot of money and that is the only gift you should anticipate from me this year. Well that and guiding you through the stock market ups and downs.

festivus2 investwithalex — Christmas Card I Most Often Get From My Mother

P.S. I sure there are at least a few messed up people like me out there. If you hate Christmas as much as I do, please send me a note so we can celebrate Festivus together on December the 23rd. Cheers!!!

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