CONSUMER SPENDING NEWS ON FASTMOVING

New York – Improvements in real home prices, initial unemployment claims and real wages drove an increase in the Deloitte Consumer Spending Index last month.  read more

Plano, Texas -- J.C. Penney Co. on Thursday took the wraps off its highly anticipated new home department. More than 500 stores received a complete home department revamp, with updated flooring, accent lighting, custom fixturing and a widened pathway. read more

The 2013 MasterCard Top Global Destination Cities Index reveals that Johannesburg has taken the number one spot as Africa’s top destination. read more

A new property sector is opening up in African markets as retailers growing their presence there are now in need of or building their own distribution warehouses, according to Belinda Clur, managing director of Clur Research International. read more

Johannesburg - Mr Price Group, extended gains after full-year earnings beat estimates as sales improved at its apparel chain. read more

REDLANDS, Calif. -- Esri announces that Carrefour Group, the second-largest retailer in the world with nearly 10,000 stores around the globe, has implemented an enterprise-wide marketing solution from Esri partner Galigeo.  read more

Pioneer Foods Ltd. said it expects slower spending to curb its full-year performance. read more

Johannesburg - A thirst for beer among Africa's middle classes is driving the world's biggest brewers to invest on the continent, but getting women to drink the beverage is another matter. read more

Austin, Texas. Whole Foods Market on Tuesday reported that its second-quarter net income rose to $142 million from $118 million a year earlier, beating analysts estimates. The chain also raised its full-year forecast. read more

The demand for retail space across remote towns in Eastern Cape such as Sterkspruit, Mthatha and Tsolo formerly known as the Transkei has accelerated, according to JHI Properties. read more

South Africa’s black middle class has more than doubled in the last eight years, growing from 1.7-million South Africans in 2004 to an estimated 4.2-million in 2012, according to research by the UCT Unilever Insitute of Strategic Marketing. read more

Johannesburg - Growth in credit demand by South Africa's private sector slowed to 7.79% year-on-year in March from 7.88% in February, data from the South African Reserve Bank showed on Tuesday. read more

Johannesburg - Clicks Group has said diluted earnings per share excluding one-time items will grow 5 to 10 percent in the year to end August amid weakening demand.  read more

Washington - Africa, with its improved economies, can contribute to global growth for the first time in history, African finance ministers said on Saturday in Washington. read more

On Casino’s first quarter results, Gildas Aitamer, Retail Analyst at Planet Retail, commented:  read more

New York - U.S. retail sales fell 0.4% in March, the biggest decrease in nine months, amid a slowdown in hiring and higher taxes. Excluding sales of autos, gas and building materials, core sales dropped 0.2% in March, following a 0.3% increase in January. read more

Johannesburg - South Africa's manufacturing output fell 2.9% year-on-year in volume terms in February, the first contraction in five months, compared with revised 3.7% growth in January, Statistics South Africa said on Thursday.  read more

Johannesburg - The SA consumer could switch some of their expenditure from consumption to home buying‚ FNB household and consumer sector strategist John Loos said on Wednesday read more

Cape Town - Fast growing Africa could be a dominant force in the world's economic landscape for decades to come if the continent gets its act together, top Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill said on Tuesday.  read more

According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Smart Connected Device Tracker, worldwide shipments of smart connected devices grew 29.1% year over year in 2012, crossing 1 billion units shipped with a value of $576.9 billion.  read more

Seoul - South Korea's Samsung Electronics said on Friday it expected a sharp increase in first-quarter operating profit to 8.7-trillion won ($7.7-billion), up 52.9 percent from the first three months of 2012. read more

Elim Mall became the latest shopping mall to open in Limpopo province, on March 28 2013, bringing Elim consumers a new generation premium-grade retail experience. read more

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT), the world’s largest retailer, is trying out new delivery methods and adding to its mobile technology to improve Web-based shopping and step up its challenge to Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) read more

The R500 million upgrades and redevelopment of Liberty Promenade has helped the retail centre to achieve 11.63% in turnover growth, entrenching its status as the preferred shopping destination of the Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha communities. read more

Sunward Park shopping centre, an upcoming retail centre in Boksburg, today announced that it will open its door in September 2013, and offer Shoppers with festival of fine food and entertainment. read more

Plano, Texas -- A Tuesday report by Reuters said that embattled J.C. Penney Co. has recently revived its previously abandoned pricing strategy of raising prices on its own brands then discounting them as a way to spike sales and margins.  read more

The price of petrol (95ULP) will increase by 10 cents a litre at the coast and 12 cents a litre in Gauteng, with effect from midnight on Tuesday. read more

London - Global brewer SABMiller expects more growth from its business in Latin America, its largest market, even though the company has limited exposure to high-growth Brazil and Mexico. read more

Lisbon - No matter how Cyprus's financial drama ends, its troubles show yet again that rich countries enfeebled by the great financial crisis remain a weak link in the world economy. read more

Nicosia - The two main banks at the centre of Cyprus's financial crisis slashed the daily cash withdrawal limits from ATM machines on Sunday, state media reported. read more

The latest Wine & Spirit Trade Association market report shows that year on year alcohol duty rises have hit consumer spending on alcohol in the on and the off trade. read more

Johannesburg - Withdrawals from ATMs across the country remained stagnant in February, increasing only 0.69% from January, Spark ATM Systems said on Monday. read more

Legislation paving the way for putting e-tolling on the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) into practice was approved in the National Assembly on Tuesday.  read more

Despite challenging economic conditions more shopping centres are expected to be built this year as retailers roll out new stores to increase their market share and commercial banks experience strong growth in loan demand from existing and new property clients. read more

Johannesburg - The National Energy Regulator of SA (Nersa) will on Thursday announce its decision on Eskom's proposed electricity tariff hike.  read more

Pretoria - South Africa's economic growth quickened to 2.1% quarter-on-quarter in the fourth quarter of 2012 on a seasonally adjusted and annualised basis from 1.2% in Q3, Statistics South Africa said on Tuesday.  read more

Western Europe was the only one of the brewer Heineken's regions to see a fall in sales as austerity measures and pay cuts took their toll on drinkers.  read more

Johannesburg - JD Group, a South African furniture retailer and financial services provider, said high unemployment and an oversupply of unsecured lending is causing consumers to spend less on durable goods. read more

Houston -- A report released Tuesday by research company NPD Group found that the convenience store sector experienced marked gains last year, as visits increased 4.6% in the fourth quarter and grew an average of 3.7% per month for 2012. read more

Copenhagen - Danish brewer Carlsberg posted a rise in annual profit on Monday and said it would look to Asia for future growth as European consumers cut back on spending amid economic uncertainty. read more

Johannesburg - Consumers may be in for a hard time as the petrol price is expected to rise by up to 80c a litre next month, an economist said on Friday. read more

Johannesburg - Retailer Woolworths Holdings [JSE:WHL] reported a 21% rise in first-half profit chiefly as a result of contributions from its recent acquisition in Australia. read more

Effective marketing for a competitive shopper environment has recently emerged to reflect a change in how retailers understand and relate to the overall “path to purchase.” read more

New York -- Although there were some surprising gains among retailers in January, for the most part results were expectedly mixed, as consumers took a hit on their take-home pay from higher payroll taxes but cooler weather gave a boost to others. read more

Sydney, "Be polite but not too familiar, display lucky symbols and take things slowly." unusual advice for the frantic world of retail but Australian stores hope it will help lure cashed-up Chinese tourists.  read more

The focus of shopping centre development in metropolitan areas such as Johannesburg, Cape Town, eThekweni and Tshwane makes sense considering South Africa’s latest population statistics. read more

Cape Town - Cash withdrawals fell 9.18% to R440.53 in January, but consumers will regain positive momentum in March, Spark Cash Index (SCI) said on Thursday. read more

Chicago -- Seventy-eight percent of those who celebrate Valentine’s Day plan to shop a week or less before the actual day, and still many wait until Feb. 13 or Feb. 14 to purchase, finds recent research by The NPD Group.  read more

Washington - American income growth surged in December as companies rushed to make dividend payments before higher tax rates set in, while buoyant wage growth also gave a lift to households. read more

South African consumers spent over R116 billion on their credit cards in December 2012, payment clearing house BankservAfrica said on Thursday. read more

Johannesburg - Clicks Group [JSE:CLS] has reported an 11.7% rise in group turnover to R5.97bn for the 18 weeks to December 30 2012 as consumer spending remained muted. read more

New York - US consumer sentiment unexpectedly deteriorated for a second straight month to its lowest in over a year in January, with many consumers citing the recent fiscal cliff debate in Washington, a survey released on Friday showed. read more

Carrefour SA (CA), France’s biggest retailer, reported a 0.8 percent increase in fourth-quarter sales because of growth in Latin America, and said business continued to improve in France. read more

New York -- Total holiday retail sales increased 3% to $579.8 billion, below the National Retail Federation s projected forecast of 4.1%. Non-store holiday sales grew 11%, below the 12% growth forecast by Shop.org. (The NRF sales figures exclude automobiles, gas stations and restaurants.) read more

Stamford - Worldwide spending on devices such as mobile phones, tablets, printers and PCs will reach $666bn in 2013, according to market research firm Gartner.  read more

Johannesburg - Withdrawals from ATMs across the country between December 11 and 18 rose 6.57% year-on-year, Spark ATM Systems said on Wednesday.  read more

The fight for market share among food and clothing retailers would continue next year as retail sales were expected to remain flat while consumers battled with high debt and increased utility costs, retail analysts said last week. read more

Goodlettsville, Tenn. -- Dollar General Corp. on Tuesday posted a bigger-than-expected increase in quarterly profit and total sales in line with Wall Street expectations. But the chain said it remained cautious about the rest of the year, amid heightened pricing competition.  read more

Johannesburg - Consumer confidence declined during the fourth quarter of 2012, First National Bank and the Bureau for Economic Research's Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) reported on Tuesday.  read more

Americans unexpectedly pared spending in October as superstorm Sandy depressed wages, showing the world’s largest economy is cooling as lawmakers seek ways to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff.  read more

New York - Wall Street slipped on Monday, pulling back from last week's gains, as retailers fell on concerns about heavy discounts at the start of the US holiday shopping season and the overhang of the “fiscal cliff” kept investors wary of making big bets. read more

Johannesburg, Monday, 26 November 2012 – The 15th annual Deloitte Holiday Survey looks at what South African and European shoppers will be buying during the coming festive season, and also examines what will be driving their purchase decisions.  read more

Johannesburg - Africa has more millionaires than Russia, but for many wealthy Africans shopping for designer handbags or luxury watches still means travelling to New York or Europe. read more

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. reported Thursday net income of $3.64 billion for the quarter ended Oct. 31, up from $3.34 billion in the year-ago period.  read more

New York -- Survey results released Tuesday by Accenture found that half of U.S. consumers are likely to make a small luxury purchase in the next six months, including 53% who are likely to purchase specialty food or drinks, 48% to purchase luxury clothing and 48% to purchase luxury personal care products. read more

London - A surge in the cost of feed grain after the worst US drought in more than half a century has stripped many livestock farmers of profit and set off a chain of events that threatens to drive up world meat prices in 2013. read more

In the shadow of the US fiscal cliff, it’s difficult to focus on the few promising signs of recovery. But green shoots are sprouting in the world’s two biggest economies – the US and China. read more

South African retailers are expected to enjoy a better Christmas this year, thanks to easy credit and low interest rates. read more

Johannesburg - South African household expenditure increased 24.6% between 2005/2006 and 2010/2011, Stats SA said on Tuesday.  read more

The retail price of 95 octane petrol will decline by 10 cents per litre on Wednesday, 7 November‚ the Department of Energy announced on Friday (2 November).  read more

Johannesburg - South African stocks closed at all-time highs on Thursday led by Swiss luxury goods group Richemont [JSE:CFR] after a brokerage upgrade and as the market found support from positive economic data from the United States and China. read more

South Africa's benchmark stock index closed above 33,000 for the first time in its 17-year history on Wednesday, booking a record close for the third straight day as investors piled into oversold mining firms such as Anglo American. read more

Washington - US economic growth picked up in the third quarter as a late burst in consumer spending offset the first cutbacks in investment in more than a year by cautious businesses.  read more

Johannesburg - South African consumers are borrowing to meet their basic needs such as food and transport, a credit and over-indebtedness summit heard on Wednesday. read more

London - Britain was this week set to confirm its official exit from a deep recession, although a return to growth would fail to signal a rosy future for the country's fragile economy, according to analysts.  read more

London - The number of unemployed people in recession-hit Britain fell by 50 000 to 2.53 million in the quarter to August from the total in the previous quarter, official data showed on Wednesday.  read more

Americans stepped up their spending at retail businesses in September, reflecting their growing confidence in the US economy. read more

Carrefour SA (CA), the world’s second- largest retailer, gained the most in France’s benchmark CAC 40 Index after reporting sales that signaled new Chief Executive Officer Georges Plassat’s turnaround plan may be working.  read more

Growth in manufacturing output slumped in August to 3 percent year on year, Statistics SA said yesterday. However, Nedbank’s economic unit described the figure as “much better than expected, despite the slowing from the 6.3 percent achieved in July”.  read more

Carlsberg A/S (CARLA), the Danish maker of Tuborg beer, expects that 2013 will be another challenging year as the economic slowdown leads Europeans to drink less.  read more

Johannesburg – Shares in luxury group Richemont [JSE:CFR] dropped nearly 5% in midmorning trade on the JSE on Tuesday in what traders attributed to profit-taking following the release of a profit warning by Burberry Group - another luxury group listed in London.  read more

Johannesburg – The rand was relatively flat in late trade on Monday as traders eyed international data and news for direction. read more

Wednesday’s hefty 93c/litre petrol price hike is likely to hit consumers hard – and not just at the fuel pumps. The Minerals and Energy Department announced the biggest fuel price hike this year on Friday, prompting AA spokesman Gary Ronald to warn the hike would affect “absolutely everything”. read more

South Africa’s animal feed industry, poultry producers and consumers face greater strain as the international demand for local grain products looks set to diminish the domestic maize surplus.  read more

Johannesburg - Consumer price inflation (CPI) eased further to 4.9% in July, Statistics South Africa said on Wednesday.  read more

Cape Town - Prices at SA's petrol pumps may rise by up to 78 cents next month, after a 22c increase in August. read more

Bankers' reluctance to lend to people with less-than-pristine credit histories is restraining the US economic recovery by holding back consumer borrowing and spending, new research from the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank shows.  read more

Credit extended to South Africa’s households and corporates rose in May, but analysts warn activity in these sectors could be sluggish in 2012. read more

The retail price of the 93 grade of petrol will decrease by 89c per litre (c/l) on Wednesday July 4‚ the department of energy announced on Friday.  read more

The Reserve Bank may revise its inflation forecasts lower as a result of figures pointing to an improved outlook, the Bank’s deputy research head, Johan van den Heever, said on Thursday. read more

Johannesburg - South Africa's consumer inflation braked more than expected to 5.7% year-on-year (y/y) in May from 6.1% in April, returning to the Reserve Bank's 3%- 6% target band, Statistics South Africa said on Wednesday.  read more

The country’s second-largest retailer, Pick n Pay (PIK), is operating in a time of tightened consumer spending, increased competition in the retail sector, and increased food inflation and utility costs, the retailer’s chairman, Gareth Ackerman, said on Friday. read more

The bleak global economic outlook also steals the glint from local retailers' eyes. According to Nedbank economists Dennis Dykes and Johannes Khosa, the outlook will hurt consumer confidence and heighten concerns over job security, which will make consumers more cautious about spending.  read more

SA retailers are aware that local consumers are becoming more cyber-savvy and are upgrading their online shopping capabilities in response, but they still have some way to go. read more

Johannesburg - Growth in South Africa's retail sales braked sharply to 1.0% on a year-on-year basis at constant prices in April, compared with a revised 6.7% in March, Statistics South Africa said on Wednesday. read more

Rural consumers paid more than their urban counterparts for the same food basket last month, according to the Food Price Monitor compiled by the National Agriculture Marketing Council. read more

Johannesburg - Consumer credit health in South Africa declined between the first and second quarters this year, according to the results of the Transunion consumer credit index released on Tuesday. read more

South Africa will compete for retail investment with countries other than China, Brazil, Russia and India, its partners in the Brics grouping, as consumer spending doubles in the next decade, according to research by AT Kearney, the management consultancy. read more

Trading profit for the period under review reflected a pleasing improvement over the same period last year. The consumer remained under pressure, high unemployment levels persisted and food retail competition intensified, which all led to a challenging trading environment. This was partly countered by higher internal inflation of 7.2% for the period. read more

South African consumers experienced a further improvement in their cash flow position in the first quarter of 2012, Unisa's Bureau of Market Research's (BMR) consumer financial vulnerability index released on Wednesday showed.  read more