Holiday sales figure worse than expected

NEW YORK - In what may have been the lousiest holiday season in a decade, the nation's retailers reported sales figures that were even worse than expected, the result of a souring economy and bad winter weather.

"The Grinch stole Christmas," said Kurt Barnard, publisher of the Barnard Retail Trend Report, based in Upper Montclair, N.J. "I haven't seen anything like this in nine or 10 years. We are seeing a consumer badly strapped for spending money, and under the influence of pessimism."

A slew of companies, including Gap, Intimate Brands, Limited, AnnTaylor and Tiffany, warned yesterday that fourth-quarter earnings would fall below estimates. The heavy markdowns needed to bring in customers ate up many stores' profits.

Even Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer and usually one of the industry's best performers, reported disappointing December results. It said sales at stores open at least a year, known as same-store sales, rose a meager 0.3 percent from a year earlier. Wal-Mart had expected a gain of 3 percent to 5 percent.

Barnard said the only shoppers who seemed to be spending freely were teen-agers. They headed for chains like Hot Topics, American Eagle and Gadzooks, all of which reported strong sales for the month.

Nonetheless, 2001 is expected to be a painful year. Consumer confidence slipped in December to its lowest level in two years, which means a slow start to 2001.