Consumer Attitudes & Behavior

ARMONK, N.Y. — IBM's fifth annual Online Retail Holiday Readiness report has uncovered that 2012 may just be the year of mobile.

Based on data from more than 500 U.S. retailers, the report found that online mobile sales increased 88.8% in second quarter 2012, compared with year-ago period.

What's more, IBM is forecasting that mobile sales will reach 20% of total online holiday sales this holiday season, and that mobile traffic will close in on 25%.

Walmart is used to encountering opposition to its new stores, just not in its own backyard.

However, that is what’s been happening in the sprawling master planned community of Bella Vista, Ark., where residents, some of them anyway, are up in arms over a planned Walmart Neighborhood Market. They say the location of the proposed stores is a poor choice and the 24-hour store with four gas pumps will bring additional traffic to an already busy road.

Assessing the strength of the American consumer has become something of a national past time, especially during an election year. And as conflicting data points paint a picture of a lumpy economic recovery both presidential candidates can find something in retailers’ sales results that lend credence to their arguments.

Most Americans are locked in a struggle to make ends meet, which is why Walmart’s message of saving people money so they can live better is resonating stronger than ever.

By Jason Hamilton, [email protected]

On the job hunt, experience matters.

Or, does it? Maybe not as much as many job seekers and hourly employers might think.

NEW YORK — Volume sales for U.S. consumer packaged goods have fallen since last year due to higher prices, less promotional support and soaring temperatures, according to Nielsen SVP consumer and shopper insights Todd Hale.

PLEASANTON, Calif. — Safeway Inc has raised more than $9 million during its month-long Prostate Cancer Awareness Campaign.

Weak housing data notwithstanding, plenty of people spent money fixing up their homes this spring judging by the results of select retailers with exposure to the home improvement market.