Statewide Iowa — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says due to a number of factors, retailers are going to see a significant increase in sales this holiday season.
Goss says even if you subtract out an inflation rate of five-to-six percent, there’s still a lot of pent up demand created by the stimulus packages approved during the Trump and Biden Administrations.
Goss predicts more people will go into a store to buy gifts since buying online and expecting the package to be delivered on time seems dicey given the cargo back-ups at U.S. ports.
There will be fewer bargains, according to Goss, and retailers will face the headaches of empty shelves due to supply chain issues and the difficulty in finding extra staff for the holiday shopping season. Goss says in this part of the country, there are one-point-four jobs for every person who is looking for a job.
Goss conducts monthly surveys of supply managers in manufacturing plants in Iowa and eight other states. Goss does a separate monthly survey of bankers in rural areas of Iowa and nine other states.
