Thinking About Retail Sales.

"The December chain-store results showed clearly that, for many people, no degree of price-discounting makes an extra sweater or TV worth buying-not when unemployment is in the process of speeding above 7%. A secondary result of this spending discipline, or simple cash shortage, among consumers will become vivid in the coming week. Namely official wholesale and retail price indexes will take on a deflationary look, with broad price declines forecast for each. This helps explain Treasury yields at historic lows and also hints at why big companies are in a rush to raise cheap debt at low rates from investors eager to accept them."--Barrons, Week of January 13, 2009.