Despite stock market fluctuations, a partial government shutdown and growing concerns over potentially slowing global growth, consumers in the U.S. reportedly opened their wallets with abandon this holiday season. MasterCard SpendingPulse, which tracks spending both in stores and online, announced on Wednesday that U.S. consumers had spent more than $850 billion between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24 this year ― an increase of about 5 percent compared to 2017. MasterCard said it was the best holiday season for retail in at least six years. “From shopping aisles to online carts, consumer confidence translated into holiday cheer for retail,” Steve Sadove, a MasterCard senior advisor, said in a statement. “By combining the right inventory with the right mix of online versus in-store, many retailers were able to give consumers what they wanted via the right shopping channels.”

Source: Huffington Post December 27, 2018 09:11 UTC