Published : Friday, 10 Jul 2009, 9:08 AM EDT
By Luke Funk
MYFOXNY.COM - How early is too early for Christmas marketing? Apparently it's not July for Sears Holdings Company.
The company owns Sears and Kmart. It has opened an online holiday store and Christmas boutiques at hundreds of stores.
The company hopes to nudge consumers into starting their holiday shopping early and use the retailer's lay-a-way plan. Lay-a-way plans allow shoppers to pay for items over an extended period before they actually take the merchandise home. Sears reintroduced the program year-round in January.
The Christmas Lane section of the Web site is linked off of the homepage and features holiday decor, gifts and an offer for free shipping on purchases over $75.
A quick browse through the gift suggestions show some items more geared to summer than Santa, like a propane grill, retro coolers and recreational folding chairs.
The holiday decor section does feature a selection of artificial trees and wreaths.
Sears, like most major retailers, has seen a plunge in retail sales over the past several months but the company's stock is up almost 40% for the year.
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Friday, July 10, 2009
Sears Starts Christmas Sales In July
A Big Tell
This morning Goldman comes out with a bullish call on tech hardware....and the QQQQs are negative on the day! Not good; the bulls better show up fast.
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Two observations that I think Mr. Chuckles is starting to factor in:
1. The economy is MUCH weaker than anyone wants to admit.
2. The politicians in Washington (and all across America) don't understand a thing about economics
Conclusion: We may be setting up for a horrible fall and winter in the market. Nobody wants to talk about it, but there is no guarantee at all that we don't go below 666 on the S&P 500. I am not saying that it will be a rational move, but it sure can happen. From a political standpoint, I think this sets up the Republicans to take over some key governorships, and the U.S. Senate in 2010.
More On Political Worries
Jim Cramer hits the nail on the head in his piece this morning. The biggest thing we have to fear is Washington. I have been told by some that worrying about cap and trade tax is silly and that it will not cost that much. Everything I read says exactly the opposite. On top of that the Senate Finance Committee is looking into Medicare taxes on capital gains according to an article from Bloomberg this morning.
Somebody really needs to explain to these folks that if the economy does not recover, or they continue to bury any hope of recovery under a flurry of new taxes and regulations healthcare and global warming are not really going to matter. There simply will not be any money to pay for all these wonderful proposals. You cannot borrow and tax your way back to prosperity.
I really hate thinking about politics in the context of stocks but at this point you cannot ignore the news out from inside the beltway.
Source: Tim Melvin
thestreet.com
Politics...Politics
I have been saying of late that I am particularly concerned about the possibility of the politicians having a negative impact on stocks. Well, this morning, Jim Cramer basically said the same thing. He wrote: "Ever since the passage of cap-and-trade in the House, I have grown increasingly worried that Washington is going to sink us. This is a point I have been making on my show and here, but I am reiterating it as the more important reason we cannot rally above the range..."
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FBR Capital conducted the second quarterly buy-side unemployment survey, and expectations for the unemployment rate at the end of '09 are decidedly more bearish, their clear consensus is now for 10.1-10.5% unemployment by the end of '09 (82% expect unemployment to reach 10-11% by yr end). They note investors expect the rate of change in unemployment to peak in 2H09; however, overall expectations for the timing and magnitude of the peak are largely in line with last quarter's survey. Buy-siders are basically split, with 55% believing the unemployment rate will surpass 11% and 45% expecting unemployment to stay south of 11%. In a shift from last quarter, buy-siders now expect unemployment to peak in 2Q10, pushed back from expectations of a 4Q09 peak.
Briefing.com
Lower Futures
Futures are pointing to a weaker open. Oil is trading lower; $58.94.
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