Check out U.S. retailers and the expectation that they will report improved monthly same-store sales on Thursday, helped by November’s cooler weather and the Thanksgiving holiday shopping weekend. 

But the numbers could look better than they truly are because of a calendar shift that will boost some same-store sales figures in November and deflate results in December, disguising the true winners and losers.

An extra week on last year’s retail calendar has created monthly periods this year that are not exactly comparable to year-ago results. 

This November reporting period will gain a high-volume, post-Thanksgiving/early-December week, while December loses a pre-Christmas week and picks up a post-Christmas week. 

Investors will be sorting through the sales figures and the impact of the calendar shift to glean insight into how consumer spending, which makes up two-thirds of the U.S. economy, is holding up amid rising food and fuel costs, lower home values and tighter credit. 

The November sales results take on added importance because they include the Thanksgiving shopping weekend, which is seen as the launch of the crucial holiday shopping season. (Read full preview story here)

Also in the basket:

Hooray for Weak Dollar: Flood of Tourists Boosts Retailers’ Holiday Traffic (WWD, subscription required)

Walgreen Nov. same-store sales rise 4.4 percent

Deutsche Bank sees luxury sector slowing in 2008

Skechers says to expand distribution in China 

AutoZone quarterly profit rises 7 percent

(Photo: Reuters)