Even before the shutdown, US consumers self-reported that they have been cutting their daily spending from $95 in August to $84 in September – IHS chief economist Nariman Behravesh and IHS Global Insight economist Sara Johnson don't really expect it to get better.
We were already struggling, then 9/11 happened and there was a shutdown of consumer participation.
But the tepid sales figures could worsen if the government shutdown hurts consumer confidence in the economy.
AT Liz Claiborne, the apparel company that is struggling to endure a shutdown in consumer spending, executives have their own stimulus plan.
The nation's retailers said they suffered a fourth consecutive month of steep sales declines in January, underscoring a broad and sustained shutdown in consumer spending.
Part of that forecast, however, is because last year's holiday season wasn't particularly good, following a federal government shutdown that eroded consumer confidence.
Liz Claiborne, the apparel company that owns popular labels including Kate Spade, Juicy Couture and Lucky Brand, said Tuesday it would cut 725 jobs, or 8percentt of its work force, as it tries to endure a consumer spending shutdown that has been particularly brutal for apparel retailers.
Next week, AOL says, they'll begin to communicate the news to consumers around the shutdown of three of those properties – AOL Pictures, BlueString and Xdrive.
"Especially last year, the payroll tax increase, the government shutdown – all of these hurt consumer confidence," Borysiak said.
Notes CEO Oz Etzioni, the company will remain based in both Israel and NYC following the consumer app's shutdown, and is planning on expanding after finalizing a funding round.
