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Shoppers disappoint retailers this holiday season

WASHINGTON – U.S. holiday sales so far this year have been the weakest since 2008, when the nation was in a deep recession. That puts pressure on stores that now hope for a post-Christmas burst of spending.

This year’s holiday season was marred by bad weather and uncertainty about the economy in the face of possible tax hikes and spending cuts early next year. Some analysts say the massacre of schoolchildren in Newtown, Conn., earlier this month may also have chipped away at shoppers’ enthusiasm.

Sales for the two months before Christmas increased 0.7 percent compared with last year,...

 

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