Sales declines at US department stores belie claims of economic recovery

[RSS News]

via wsws.org

Large sections of the working population lack the wherewithal to buy more than the bare necessities, which is why the retail slump is primarily hitting stores that cater to the working class.

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[Prof. Oblivion]

Very poorly written article. WSWS seems to quote figures to try to make themselves sound more authoritative.

More pervasive, however, is the impact of the devastating social crisis affecting broad layers of the working class. While President Donald Trump boasts of a booming economy, citing record high stock prices, and Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen talks of “full employment” and a full recovery from the post-2008 “Great Recession,” tens of millions are struggling to survive on the basis of poverty-level wages that have either stagnated or declined and part-time or temporary employment in place of full-time jobs that have been permanently eliminated.

This is largely untrue. A look at overall US retail spend shows that it hasn't had a marked decline. The closure of retail stores is due to a shift in consumer sentiment towards shopping online. Retail stores can't compete because they have to fund store upkeep and wages.

Even as the stock market is driven upwards by unlimited subsidies from the Federal Reserve and unchecked financial speculation, real economic growth continues to stagnate. The US gross domestic product is rising at an anemic annual rate of 2 percent, far below the rates of previous post-World War II economic recoveries. And despite a nominal unemployment rate of just 4.3 percent, wages continue to rise a mere 2 percent on an annual basis, far more slowly than in previous post-recession periods and below the rate of prices increases for basic necessities.

Wtf does "unlimited subsidies from the Federal Reserve" even mean? Now they're sounding like Tea Partiers.

That the destruction of decent-paying and stable employment is driving the retail crisis is confirmed by the announcement Thursday of plans to close up to 135 Applebee’s and up to 60 IHOP restaurants—two chains owned by parent company DineEquity. Both restaurant chains feature relatively low prices and appeal primarily to a working class clientele. Both recorded lower same-restaurant sales in the second quarter of 2017.

This author clearly hasn't been in an Applebee's. People don't go there because they're shit, and they can go to a fast casual spot like Chipotle which is cheaper and better quality.