Americans, beset by product shortages, rising prices and the arrival of omicron, sharply cut their spending in December after a burst of spending in the fall that helped bolster the holiday season. Retail sales fell a seasonally adjusted 1.9 percent in December compred with the previous month when sales increased0.3 percent. Retired Ripon College economist Paul Schoofs says it doesn’t come as a surprise. Schoofs says as COVID-19 cases continue to spike he wouldn’t be surprised to see retail spending continue to dip to start the new year.
