December 2005 Archives
Gold Hits 23 Year High!
Gold futures in New York raced to their highest level in almost 23 years on Thursday morning, powered by investment fund buying following the breakout above the key $500 an ounce level earlier this week.
The market's recent robust rally also hoisted the other precious metals, pushing silver to an 18-year high and lifting platinum and palladium prices sharply.
At the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, February delivery gold was up $6.30 at $505 an ounce by 10:51 a.m., trading from $494.30 to $505.70, which marked the highest price for an actively traded futures contract since February 1983.
At that time, gold reached a high of around $514 an ounce.
"It's fund buying right here," a COMEX floor trader said.
Gold has found favor with hedge funds diversifying into commodities to enhance returns, along with its classic role as a hedge amid economic uncertainty and geopolitical unease.
Also fueling gains were investors' worries about inflation, as well as expectations that Russia, Argentina and South Africa are friendly to boosting the amount of gold in their reserves, analysts said.
The latest peak in February gold surpassed the 18-year peak scaled on Tuesday in then-benchmark December gold, at $502.30.
"The $500 level was a psychological point and we broke through that," said Emanuel Balarie, senior market strategist at Wisdom Financial Inc. "With gold still rising today, I think we are going to crack $600 sometime in 2006."
Balarie felt that one reason gold had room to rise further was that bullion's high of $850, touched in 1980, after being adjusted for inflation today, would be now worth around $2,150 in current dollars.
"Gold is still very cheap when you look at it in that perspective," he said.
However, the COMEX floor trader noted that trade selling and some speculative profit taking had emerged at higher prices this week.
Next resistance was pegged above $505 and then at $506.70 -- its life-of-contract high from Tuesday, before it became the most actively traded month.
Chart support was viewed at $500, $498.40 and $497, traders said.
Dealers said the market was awaiting the U.S. November unemployment report on Friday for a potential reaction in trading.
Brokerage firm UBS said it raised its average per ounce gold price forecast for 2005 to $441 from $434, for 2006 to $520 from $455, and for 2007 to $500 from $435.
Spot gold was quoted at $500.50/501.30, against $494.10/4.90 at Wednesday's New York close. Thursday's afternoon fix in London was at $499.75.
March silver futures rose 15 cents to $8.535 an ounce, dealing from $8.29 to $8.555 -- the highest price since October 1987.
Spot silver fetched $8.42/44 an ounce, from $8.27/29 previously. The fix was at $8.315.
NYMEX January platinum gained $14.10 to $994.50 an ounce. On Monday, futures shot up to $1,011 -- their highest price since March 1980.
Spot platinum firmed to $988/992.
March palladium futures rose $12 to $272 an ounce -- a fresh 19-month high. Spot palladium was worth $265/268.
Stay tuned.
Gold Up $11 This Week!
Gold futures climbed Friday to close at an 18-year high above $500 an ounce, logging a gain of 2.2% for the week, while copper futures finished lower for the first time in six sessions.
Gold for December delivery rose 80 cents to close at $503.30 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after climbing as high as $505.50. Prices haven't traded at levels this high since December of 1987.
The contract was up $11 from Nov. 23, which was the final trading day of the Thanksgiving week. February gold closed up 70 cents at $507.
Gains in the precious metal came as the U.S. dollar eased off its highs against the Japanese yen. Treasury Secretary John Snow reportedly said finance ministers of the Group of Seven most industrialized nations will discuss yen weakness at their weekend meeting.
"The dollar sold of against yen after Snow's comments on the G7," said Charles Nedoss, an analyst at PeakTradingGroup.com. Weakness in the greenback oftn spurs investment demand for gold.
But a Treasury spokesman said Snow made no comment on the yen Friday. See Currencies.
At the same time, December copper reached a record $2.183 a pound before closing at $2.1525, down 1.55 cents. Prices for the industrial metal had been climbing since Nov. 23 so it still ended the week 9.6% higher.
Overall, inflationary concerns appear to be growing "with copper exploding and energy prices regaining their footing," said Nell Sloane, an analyst at NSFutures.com.
"Therefore, the gold market appears to be benefiting from a number of bullish factors again, and that should help the market grind out even more gains on the charts," she said in a note to clients.
December silver strengthened Friday, taking on 4.5 cents to finish at $8.544 an ounce. It hit an intraday high of $8.575, that's the highest futures price since 1987. See also Commodities Corner.
Elsewhere in the metals market, January platinum added $13.20 to end at $1,007.90 an ounce. It climbed as high as $1,008.90 earlier, its highest since March 1980. The contract was up 2.4% for the week.
Sister metal palladium saw its December contract added $4.70 cents to close at $269.10 an ounce -- up 2.7% for the week. On Nov. 21, prices tapped $270, their highest level since April 2004.
Inventories of copper, silver and gold were unchanged as of late Thursday, according to Nymex. Copper supplies were at 3,681 short tons, silver at 117.6 million troy ounces and gold at 6.61 million troy ounces.
Some Holiday Shopping Tips for You Guys.
We've been told by several fellas that live with their gals that the only time they can come by our Showroom to look at Diamonds and Engagement Rings is during their work day. Their 45 minute lunch break is not enought time for this kind of momentous purchase and they would take a sick day but their Boss is savvy and has heard all of the "excuses".
What to do?
Well, here are some suggested "excuses" you can try out that are quite novel and that I'm sure your Boss has not heard:
1. "I was sprayed by a skunk."
2. "I tripped over my dog and was knocked unconscious."
3. "My bus broke down and was held up by robbers."
4. "I was arrested by the cops in a case of mistaken identity."
5. "I forgot to come back to work after lunch."
6. "I couldn't find my shoes".
Personally, I would go with #1. Guaranteed your Boss will keep his distance from you for a couple of days!
GIA Goes Global.
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) inaugurated its new Taiwan branch during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on November 17. GIA graduates and guests from across Taiwan attended the ceremony.
Similar to the institute’s relocation in London, GIA Taiwan moved across the street to a larger location that provides room for more classrooms, ceremonies and meetings. The Taiwan campus opened in 1991 and has increased its student enrollments, so much so that a new 5,500 square foot facility was required to meet the demand.
The new campus comprises of four classrooms. Two classrooms are dedicated to the on campus graduate gemologist diploma program, one is for jewelry design and CAD/CAM classes, and another is for extension classes and student labs.
In other related news, the GIA held its first ever GIA Pearl Grading Extension class in Sri Lanka on September 10. It was the GIA’s first instruction in Sri Lanka and was attended by 18 students. GIA Thailand’s Manager of Gemology Education, Surachart Panjathammawit, taught the class.
“Sri Lankans are tremendously excited about the Institute’s renowned hands-on gemological training,” said GIA Thailand Director Randy Parks, who also indicated that the institute will soon teach additional extension classes in diamond grading, gem identification, and colored stone grading in Sri Lanka.
Gold Hits Another High!
Closed today at $509.20.
Strong demand, stagnating supply, a recent shortage of forward selling by gold miners and more orderly sales from central banks have all facilitated the rally. Heavy buying began in 2004 as investors turned away from a (largely) stagnate stock market and instead purchased commodities, which outperformed traditional stocks and bonds.
Speculators have bought spot gold and futures, specialist investment products and shares in mining firms, radically bringing up the prices due to the relatively small supply of commodities compared with other asset classes.
Other precious metals have also followed gold's lead. Platinum reached $1,003 an ounce in New York after touching $1,006, the highest since March 1980. Palladium was at a 19-month high of $270/274 an ounce, up from $264/268. Silver was unchanged at $8.54/8.57, but off an earlier peak of $8.64, the highest since August 1987.
Ebel Watch New Ad Campaign. WOW!
Luxury watch brand Ebel has announced that supermodel Gisele Bündchen will represent the brand in Ebel's new "Architects of Time" global advertising campaign.
"A born show-stopper who lights up fashion shows and magazines all over the world, Gisele perfectly embodies Ebel's vision of feminine confidence, sophisticated elegance and sultry allure," the company said in a release.
The model isn't the first runway-strutter to represent Ebel, as the brand has featured supermodel Claudia Schiffer in its advertising since 2004. Ebel says the worldwide campaign starring Bündchen is set to launch in leading media in April 2006.
"Gisele is ideal for our brand—her global reach makes her instantly recognizable and respected, and she reflects Ebel's international appeal," said Thomas van der Kallen, Ebel president, in the statement. "Her presence in our advertising will build on the highly successful campaign launched in fall 2004, and add breadth to our brand identity."
Are you kidding me? Who cares about the watch?!
Crystal Ball Says: Gold Is In Your Future!
The current gold bull run should continue and possibly breach $900/oz based on history, said Jim Rogers, co-founder of the Quantum Fund with George Soros. Rogers was speaking on Classic Business, a week nightly business radio program which is aired in South Africa.
Gold this morning in New York is up to $514.00.
Gold traded at a 24 month high in Asia moving to $512.72/oz, the highest since April 1981, Bloomberg News said. Gold has risen 17% this year, heading for a fifth straight annual climb, outperforming a 4.3% gain by the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, the news wire service said. Jewelery demand and signals of potential Central Bank gold purchases were supporting the metal, it said.
In every bull market, commodity and precious metal prices always record a higher spot price than in the previous cycle, Rogers said. On this basis, gold would have to push through its last historic high. “That means gold has to go to at least $900, and silver has to go much higher if history is any guide to how bull markets have always worked.”
Gold recorded a record high of $873/oz in intraday trade during January, 1980. It has however attempted similar rallies and not breached this level. It pushed through $500/oz in December 1987 while in early February, 1983, it managed a few attempts at $500/oz, peaking at $509/oz before falling to $340/oz by the end of that year.
Nonetheless, Rogers told Classic Business that under-exploration and weakness of the dollar would continue to underpin precious metal and commodity prices. Moreover, a special incentive for American companies to bring their money back to the US expires this year. “So you will see the dollar resume its decline,” Rogers said.
“The dollar is fundamentally flawed, and it’s going to be a serious problem in the next five or 10 years. However, that’s not the main reason commodities will be going up. The main reason is supply and demand are out of whack, but a weak currency like the dollar is going to help commodities.”
Rogers put his weight behind commodities in the midst of the dot.com bubble and produced a book, ‘Hot Commodities’ in 2004 claiming the world was entering a major bull run in resources. His Rogers International Commodities Index, which is a compendium of agricultural products, energy and minerals and metals, recorded monthly growth of between 184% to 234% to November this year.
If the outlook for gold was promising, there was even better news for commodities such as oil and base metals. This was again owing to under investment in the sector but also because demand would remain sharp.
“Most Chinese still don’t have electricity, most Indians still don’t have electricity. Demand will continue to grow,” he said.
The copper price was likely to correct in the short-term, but the recent declines in the oil price would be reversed. “Oil will be well over $100/barrel before it’s [the commodities bull run] over.
“If history is any guide this bull market is going to last until around 2018, sometime between 2014 and 2022, and everything is going to go much higher. There has been no major oil discovery anywhere in the world in over 35 years, every oil field you know is in decline,” he said.
$5 gallon gas at the pump? $10? Where are those electric cars?
Gold Is Going Crazy. Update.
Gold hit a new long term record for the seventh consecutive session on Friday as Japanese private investors were once again prominent buyers and any dips in the price have provided investors with fresh impetus to buy bullion and therefore underpin prices.
Gold hit a high of $525.25 a troy ounce in European trade, up more than $5 on the late quote in New York on Thursday. A strong intra-day gain that underlines the recent acceleration in the gold price, which has risen more than 6 per cent so far this month, which is more than the amount it rose for the whole of November.
The bullion price rose by more than 7 per cent between September and October, having spent the first eight months of the year relatively flat. The next target for gold is breaking the March 1981 high of $540.50.
“The activity in the bullion market remains very impressive, with aggressive buying of any dips and a dearth of selling in the rallies helping to create a bullish chart pattern of higher lows, and higher highs, thereby attracting more momentum-based fund buying,” said Alan Williamson, metals analyst at HSBC.
Mr Williamson said both London and New York have lagged the rally in Tokyo, which has been the real driver behind the most recent surge higher in prices, with the Tokyo Commodity Exchange closing limit up on the day.
He said the Tocom October contract closed up the daily limit of ¥50/g at ¥2,105/g ($542/oz), the highest close for the benchmark contract since March 1990.
Tocom trading rules do not allow daily price movements of ¥50/g above or below the previous day’s close. “Although Tocom data is opaque at best, some estimates have put open interest in the market at 501,000 lots, up around 67 per cent from about 300,000 lots in early October,” Mr Williamson said.
He said Tocom’s market management committee met to discuss the possibility of intervening in the precious metals market, but concluded that no measure was needed at this stage. Nevertheless, the exchange will continue to monitor market activity.
Mr Williamson said there are a number of reasons for the surge in demand, not least the continued weakness in the Yen which has fallen by more than 10 per cent since the beginning of September to current levels of ¥120 against the dollar.
“In turn this has helped create a virtuous circle in the gold market of rising (dollar-denominated) prices, local currency weakness, increased retail demand (in Japan), higher (dollar denominated) prices, more fund buying etc, etc,” he said.
Gold has remained above the $500 level for the past seven sessions, and is on track to exceed the 10 day period it remained above this level in 1983. The last time it was trading at $525 was when it was sliding from the all time record of $850 in January 1980. During this period gold remained above $500 for a period of 13 months.
The price of gold bullion has been rising since 1999, marking its longest upward run since it was freely floated in 1968.
Silver rose to a fresh 18 year high of $8.99 a troy ounce.
New York Trading still going on.
YO! Shopping Procrastinators! What You Gonna Do?
Last-minute gift shoppers may be a boon for jewelers, as jewelry is one of the top five gift choices for those who shop later in the holiday season for gifts, as well as for those seeking stocking stuffers.
If it's the holiday-season 11th hour, then more than 20 percent of shoppers are desperately seeking gift cards, according the latest Shopping in America 2005 survey. The study finds that by the Thanksgiving weekend, the average consumer still had more than 64 percent of their holiday shopping left to do, according to the poll of more than 2,300 shoppers from across the country conducted by research firm August Partners for The Macerich Co.
The average consumer will give about three gift cards this holiday season, the survey finds, citing the cards as the top choice of last-minute gift shoppers. Other popular last-minute gifts include: CDs, DVDs or books, selected by 19.2 percent of those polled; perfume, for 14.6 percent; jewelry for 10.1 percent; and gift baskets for 8.8 percent. Jewelry also made it onto respondents' top-five list of stocking stuffers, with 14.2 percent making sure baubles were among the small gift items included.
Many shoppers indicated they'll be waiting until closer to Christmas to do their shopping, with 30 percent saying they believe they can get better deals at that time, a prediction borne out by retailers as Christmas nears.
"About 30 percent of shoppers surveyed think they can get better deals closer to Christmas, which will likely be the case, as deep retailer discounts are expected to continue throughout the holiday season," said Garry Butcher, vice president of marketing and consumer research for The Macerich Company, in a release from the group.
Factors driving last-minute gift purchases, according to the survey, include: convenience, for 23 percent of those polled; price, for 20.5 percent; advertising, for 7.5 percent; and panic, for 4.8 percent. While a third of last-minute shoppers said they'll likely spend the same amount as they otherwise would have, more than a fifth (22 percent) said their late gift-buying ways would require them to spend more than originally planned.
Whitehall Reports Loss.
Sales at Whitehall Jewellers slid 7 percent to $58.9 million during the company's third quarter of fiscal year 2005. Whitehall's net loss grew from $8.3 million to $43 million for the quarter, which ended October 31, 2005.
Year-to-date Whitehall sales fell 5 percent from 2004 to $198.3 million. Net losses grew by nearly a multiple of five to $71.9 million.
On December 7, 2005, Whitehall received more than $2 million from the exercise of warrants resulting in the issuance of 2,792,462 Whitehall common shares to the Prentice and Holtzman investors.
Whitehall expects to close 77 stores before February 2006, which will liquidate approximately $44 million in inventory.
Sotheby's Auction Nets 24 Mil.
Fetching $1.6 million, a 26.09-carat diamond ring by Harry Winston was the top lot at Sotheby's "Magnificent Jewels" sale Thursday.
Harry Winston Ring.
The auction house sold 90.6 percent of its pieces by value and 81.7 percent by lot at the auction, which brought in $23.9 million.
Other highlights of the sale included a fancy, intense blue diamond weighing 3.16 carats that brought in nearly $1.1 million,
a sapphire and diamond ring that sold for $956,800 and a 12.6-carat marquise-shaped diamond weighing 12.6 carats that fetched $559,200.
The auction also featured a private collection of jewelry by René Lalique, which brought a total of $1.12 million. The collection included an opalescent glass, enamel, diamond and seed pearl necklace, circa 1899, that sold for $352,000—more than twice its estimated value.
Gold Fever Rages! Hits $530 on Friday.
Gold fever took prices as high as $530.40 an ounce for the first time in nearly a quarter of a century on Friday as investors, particularly in Asia, rushed to buy an asset that has gained over 16 percent in the past month.
"This buying is just more of the same of what we have been seeing. I suspect also that it may be central bank buying that is supporting it on the dips," Paul Merrick of RBC Capital Markets said.
Spot gold was at $529.70/530.50 an ounce by 1604 GMT, up two percent from $519.50/520.30 last quoted in New York on Thursday. The metal has soared $75, or 16.4 percent, since November 7.
Gold's tight supply, strong global demand, worries about inflation and growing fund interest in precious metals and other commodities have unleashed a wave of speculative buying, defying warnings that the market was overbought.
"The activity in the bullion market remains very impressive, with aggressive buying of any dips and a dearth of selling in the rallies helping to create a bullish chart pattern of higher lows and higher highs, thereby attracting more momentum-based fund buying," Alan Williamson of HSBC said.
Fund managers were buying as part of a strategy to diversify portfolios, while some investors were speculating about potential purchases from some of the word's central banks -- previously long-time sellers
"I strongly believe that Asia and China are buying -- but we will not know until they've finished buying or are close to it, for sure," said Juerg Kiener, chief investment officer at Singapore-based hedge fund Swiss Asia Capital, referring to central banks in the region.
A spokesman at the China Gold Exchange said: "We have encouraged the Bank of China to buy more gold, or if not, to relax the barriers and allow more Chinese people to do so."
Gold finished Friday Trading in New York at $529.85, Platinum at $1004, and Silver at $9.04
Why Do I See the Same Diamond Listed by Many Internet Diamond Sites?
Drop ship diamonds are an unfortunate internet practice where many internet "jewelers" and diamond vendors will attach a virtual database of wholesale diamonds from various diamond wholesalers and manufacturers.
These internet diamond stores have no experience with diamonds and jewelry and in most cases have no idea about the quality of the diamonds they are selling. They literally built a website and decided to sell diamonds! They will brag about how they have a database of a gazillion diamonds to sell. The only problem is that they never actually see these diamonds, much less know anything about the crucial nuances of any given stone.
What they are doing is simply attaching a database of stones to their website with a built in markup. In most cases you will see the same diamond on many different websites, since none of these guys actually own the stone. Then an unsuspecting customer comes along and makes a purchase for a diamond which the vendor has never seen or touched, and the stone gets "drop shipped" directly from the manufacturer to the end consumer, never once passing through the hands of the diamond seller.
Buy I-Pod, Get A Diamond, Too.
Kyocera Corporation of Japan, which is largely a communications and digital imaging company, plans to add diamond jewelry to its product set by early January 2006.
The company also sells fine china. According to press reports, the marketing staff requested adding diamonds to the jewelry offerings in order to boost luxury sales.
"Growth is our mission, and creativity is our greatest asset," the company writes as its mission statement. "Create. Change. Grow. Think creatively; execute logically," which was the line of thinking used to add diamonds to the line-up of man-made opal and synthetic gemstone jewelry.
Kyocera will procure diamonds for its Diplea-brand diamond jewelry, according to the company.
Kyocera engages in the development, production, and distribution of telecommunications equipment, electronic components, solar energy systems, and industrial ceramics. Micro-gemstones and fine ceramics parts are used in many microprocessing products the company produces and sells.
Just another company looking to make a quick buck, in our opinion. See our recent entry on this topic: Virtual Diamond Databases
Will I See A Difference?
A question we have been asked quite often, recently, is whether it is possible to "see" a difference in a diamond that has been graded with 'Very Good' (VG) Symmetry" compared to a diamond given a Symmetry Grade of 'Good' (G)?
First, what is Symmetry? Symmetry refers to the "meet points" or junction lines that align the top (Crown) with the bottom (Pavillion) of the diamond. See Figure below:
Diamond Symmetry.
The red arrows show the meet points and junction connections between the facets. When the meet points are exactly aligned the diamond will receive a Symmetry grading of Excellent or Very Good. If there is just a tiny deviation, then it a Symmetry grade of 'Good' is given.
These minute differentials can most always only be seen under microscopic magnification and is not something you will see just by looking at the diamond.
Verify Your Diamond Grading Report Online.
GIA (Gemological Institute of America) announced today that consumers and retailers will soon be able to check information on any GIA Diamond Grading Report or Diamond Dossier issued post January 1, 2000 via GIA’s new online Report Check service, due to begin on January 1.
The new online service is free, and comes on the heels of recent reports of counterfeit grading certificates found in London and in Antwerp. The service will be available by entering the GIA report number and weight of the diamond, and will provide all of the critical information on the original report, including a cut grade if applicable. The Report Check will also help determine whether the diamond should be submitted for a new cut grade.
In a press release on December 21, the GIA’s laboratory and research senior vice president, Thomas Moses, said that the new service will dissuade the use of counterfeit GIA reports as well as help preserve public trust in diamonds. The institute will also update the laboratory section on its website to provide customers with useful information on how to submit diamonds to the GIA lab as well as on day-to-day business.
In a separate release on December 21, the GIA reminded clients that those who own a diamond with a GIA Diamond Grading Report or Diamond Dossier will be able to submit their old report for a new version. The new version will include the new cut grade for D-to-Z color, standard round brilliant diamonds.
For round brilliant diamonds graded between August 1 to December 31, 2005, the new report will be issued free of charge without the diamond through March 2006. For round brilliant diamonds graded from January 1 to July 31, 2005, a new report will be issued for a fee of $15 through March 2006. For round brilliant diamonds graded prior to January 1, 2005, a new report will reflect the current date and will cost 75 percent of the diamond grading fee. After March 2006, services will return to standard fees, the GIA said.
The GIA said its education branch will introduce the new Diamond Cut Grading System in its on-campus diploma programs and lab classes in January 2006. Hands-on lab classes will also be available for graduates of the Diamonds and Graduate Gemologist diploma programs in order to update them on the new cut grade. GIA Education will also offer seminars at selected trade shows.
China Brides Want Diamonds.
Prices for diamonds in China are increasing between 30 and 40 percent according to Kevin Tomlinson, director of natural resources for Williams De Broe in London. Tomlinson told Australia's PM radio show that demand for diamonds in China is increasing because brides-to-be in China "are demanding of their men that if they want to get married, then they need to have a diamond." He added that demand growth has added pressure on the industry to find and mine more diamonds, especially in Australia.
Most analysts say the growth of the middle class in China has only just begun. This week, China revised gross domestic product (GDP) figures from 2004 pointing to larger gains than originally thought. For year 2004 China ranked No.7 in the world (behind Italy) at $1.6 trillion. On December 20, China revised its 2004 figures ahead 16.8 percent to $1.98 trillion, or slightly below France at No.5. But analysts say China is underestimating its total weight (and does not include Hong Kong or Macau in figures) to hide the nation's real strength.
If China included Hong Kong in national figures, it would jump to No.4, replacing the United Kingdom. The United States' economy is measured at $11.7 trillion, Japan at $4.6 trillion, and Germany at $2.7 trillion.
China measures its GDP with service sector returns (41 percent,) agriculture (13 percent,) and manufacturing (46 percent,) whereas nearly 70 percent of the United States' economy is based upon consumer spending.
According to Hu Yanni, of CSC Securities Co Ltd, consumers in China are not yet willing to spend their money on nonessential consumption, because they feel more pressure to spend on necessities, he told China's Interfax.
How do you say 'bling-bling' in Chinese?
Bling-bling!
No Kidding? What A Revelation!
According to a survey conducted by Harris Interactive and sponsored by Kronos Inc. consumers are more likely to make purchases and inclined to buy more merchandise per transaction when retailers provide attentive, knowledgeable service.
Savvy retailers who focus on providing higher levels of customer service are able to influence shoppers to increasing their holiday spending, Recognizing that their workforce is critical to sales,leading retailers are utilizing their workforce as a strategic asset to satisfy customers and boost sales this holiday season.
The survey found that 85 percent of respondents were “somewhat to very likely” to purchase additional products if they interacted with a competent sales associate while shopping.
The survey also found that potential buyers will return merchandise to the shelf if they were unable to find the assistance they need, effectively reversing their decision to buy. An overwhelming 82 percent of consumers will wait on line no longer than15 minutes.
Additionally, 45 percent of those polled said that they shop for themselves during the holiday season, giving retailers another incentive to ensure that they are catering to the service needs of their customers.
"Because this survey gives retailers a glimpse into the consumer psyche during the holiday shopping season, they can work to ensure they are focused on the factors that most contribute to increased spending and customer loyalty," Stuart Itkin, vice president of marketing at Kronos, said in a company press release.
Stuart, you're a frickin genius. All that money spent on the MBA degree. Common sense costs a lot less.
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