Consumers Remain Frugal

[jeffrey]

Consumers spent frugally for a fourth straight month during September, giving major retailers modest gains during the critical back-to-school season.

Wal-Mart Stores, J.C. Penney, Talbots Federated Department Stores and Kohl's were among the stores reporting sluggish results Thursday...

Consumers, particularly low- and middle-income Americans, have been forced to cut spending on clothing and other non-necessities as gasoline prices and grocery bills rise. Americans are also nervous about jobs — last week, the Conference Board reported that job worries helped push consumer confidence down in September for the second consecutive month.

Retailers also attributed the tepid sales to the hurricanes that ravaged Florida and the southeast in late August and the first half of September, which forced many stores to close... [read more at usatoday.com]