Check out the expected June sales declines at U.S. retailers.

Cooler and wetter weather made things tough for companies, especially those selling summer products in the first three weeks. Overall same-store sales for the month are expected to be down 4.8 percent, according to Thomson Reuters.

“The consumer is still up against too many hurdles to be spending too much money,” Storehouse Partners retail analyst Patricia Edwards said.

Department stores and apparel chains are expected to post the worst drops at 9.4 percent and 5.1 percent, respectively, as consumers turn  thrifty and focus on essentials in the recession.

Meanwhile, in another bad sign for a recovery, delinquencies on credit card debt rose to an all-time high in the first quarter as a record number of cash-strapped consumers fell behind on their bills, according to the American Bankers Association.

Also in the basket:

Obama administration takes action on food safety

Walmex quarter seen strong despite recession

Canada’s Jean Coutu narrowly tops estimates

Retailers Do More With Less Inventory (WWD, subscription required)

Tight Squeeze: Making Room For a New Men’s Fashion (Wall Street Journal)

In a Downturn, Jewelers Aren’t So Precious (New York Times)

(Reuters photo)

McDonald’s and credit card company Visa are extending a hand to employees to help them figure out their personal finances in a deepening recession. The two have launched a free online money management course for workers at the hamburger chain’s 14,000 U.S. restaurants.

“Now more than ever, it is crucial that people have the financial tools they need to spend responsibly and this collaborative effort is a critical part of addressing America’s financial illiteracy epidemic,” the companies said in a statement.

The online program, called Practical Money Skills for Life, is available in English and Spanish. In addition to access to the web site, employees will receive a printed “Wealth Watchers” budgeting guide.

We imagine there are plenty of Americans who could have used this kind of help 13 months ago.

Do you work at McDonald’s? Would you use this service? Let us know.

(Photo/Reuters)

Check out the lower expectations in the retail world.

Discount retailer Target Corp rang up its fifth consecutive lower quarterly profit, suspended almost all of its share buyback program and cut capital spending plans as cash-strapped consumers shifted away from its trendy merchandise to staples like food and toiletries.

Meanwhile, Lowe’s Companies, the No. 2 home improvement retailer, posted a lower profit, but even worse cut its fourth-quarter profit forecast below Wall Street’s expectations, citing rising unemployment, falling home prices and tight credit as reasons homeowners are putting off some renovations and purchases.

Most economists say the U.S. economy is in recession and will shrink even faster in the fourth quarter. The news reflects the pressures consumers are under.

The result? Fewer shoppers plan to use credit cards to buy gifts this holiday season and most have yet to complete their gift buying as retailers brace for their worst holiday season in about three decades. In fact, more consumers are simply putting away their plastic.

Also in the basket:

UPS: outlook unclear, so no peak package forecast

J. Crew Benefits as Mrs. Obama Wears the Brand (N.Y. Times)

(Photo: Reuters)

Check out the loss of more retail jobs. 

Another 27,000 retail jobs disappeared in May, according to the U.S. government’s monthly employment report. That makes 152,000 retail jobs eliminated since the beginning of the year.
 
Overall, nonfarm payrolls fell by 49,000. But even more worrisome for the economy and for retailers could be the jump in the unemployment rate to 5.5 percent. That half-point jump was the largest such move in 22 years and brought the unemployment rate to its highest level in 3-1/2 years.
 
Retailer’s May sales reports yesterday were mostly better than expected, causing some analysts to think they could signal the beginning of a consumer turnaround.
 
But others said it just showed a blip in spending that was caused by the tax rebate checks consumers have begun to receive. 
 
Economic concerns could still linger after all that stimulus money is gone, they say, and things could get worse if consumers, already hit by $4-a-gallon gasoline, soaring food prices and falling home values really start to worry about their jobs.

Wonder how a half-point jump in the unemployment number plays into that?
 
Meanwhile, to take your mind of the jobs report, there’s always the company pep rally that masquerades as the Wal-Mart annual meeting. The world’s-largest retailer flies in employees from all around the world to help pack the basketball arena at the University of Arkansas, where stars entertain the crowd (this year’s acts include Miley Cyrus), everybody does the Wal-Mart cheer, and, oh yeah, shareholders get to ask questions.
 
Also in the basket:
 
New Wal-Mart director may herald changing of the guard (Wall Street Journal, subscription required)
 
Target grows makeup artist brands, adds testers (WWD)

 (Photos: Reuters)

Check out those furrowed consumer brows.

In April, 24.5 percent of American consumers postponed a major purchase — an item of $500 or more – citing worries over higher gas prices, job security, credit card debt and the wait for a tax refund, according to a survey conducted by America’s Research Group.

That’s a big shift from a year ago, when almost 23 percent delayed a major purchase, saying they “did not want to spend the money right now.”

“This year most consumers did not even try to shop,” said C. Britt Beemer, founder and CEO of ARG. “They just stayed home to save on gas prices.” 

That new consumer mindset is a negative sign for retailers at least into 2009, Beemer said.

Also in the basket:

Lowe’s posts lower net, cuts year forecast

Dillard’s to open only four stores in 2009

 (Photo: Reuters)

Tax rebate checks are in the mail and some of the rebate cash has already made its way to consumers’ wallets. But will this cash infusion give the economy (and struggling retailers) a boost?

According to interviews Reuters conducted with consumers across the United States over the past week, the answer seems to be that most of the extra money will be heading toward the basics — like food, fuel and credit card payments — with just a little left over for splurges.

Here are some comments we rounded up:

• “I will almost certainly save it,” Courtney Hancock said outside a shopping center in the Buckhead section of Atlanta. “At this point there isn’t anything that I’ve been waiting to buy.” Her expected $600 rebate check will likely be used for a bigger purchase later. 
• Lisa Hasson, 39, free-lance pianist and mother of twin, 2-year-old boys in Cincinnati. “I’m probably just putting it in a savings account — holding onto it for the summer. Lean living for lean times.” 
• Ava Lee, 34, has been out of work in Los Angeles since December and says she’ll use her rebate check to pay for “necessary expenses” like food and gas. ”I’d use mine for everyday spending. I would not go out and say, ‘Ooh! I have extra money’,” said Lee, who has turned off her heat and air conditioning to keep expenses down. 
• Sarah Ortiz of Houston said she decided early on to use the tax rebate to pay debt. “I’m trying to get down to one credit card. They say we’re in a credit-crunch,” she said. 
• Daniel Pillow of Houston said he planned to use his rebate to pay his American Express bill, but admitted he’d already used the card to buy some extra clothes in anticipation of getting a check. “I may have spent a little bit, knowing that I was going to get a check,” said Pillow, an employee of the Houston Public Library system. 
• Morgan Lawson, 58, works at the Time-Life Building in New York supervising newspaper deliveries. ”The likelihood of saving it is slim,” he said, adding that prices seem to be rising across the board. He thinks he will have to spend it on necessities, like food and higher energy prices and clothes for his children. ”It sure doesn’t hurt,” to get the extra cash, he said, “But, it’s not a huge boost.” 
• Sergio Rivas, a computer network administrator from Hialeah, Florida, said he would put his rebate toward a deposit on a new apartment.  He said he’s looking for “something a little bit bigger, hopefully with some kind of patio.” 
• Paula Goehe, 61, retired administrative assistant in Indiana: “I’m sorry to tell you I’m not going to spend it. We need the money for retirement. We’ve been retired four or five years and we spent a lot to put our children through college, so we’ll be saving it — even though there is no interest at all.” 
• Dana Bulan, a teacher who lives in Chicago, said she will use her $300 rebate check to pay for her regular tennis lessons and won’t bother trying to save it. ”It’s such a small amount of money, it’s not worth, I think, trying to put it someplace else,” Bulan said.
• John Barker, 57, who installs swimming pools for the “super-rich” in the St. Louis area, said that although his business had not been affected by slowing economic growth, spiraling costs meant he had few plans for his rebate check. ”I’ll put it into my checking account and no doubt it will go for gas or food,” he said in the parking lot of a branch of Bank of America on the outskirts of St Louis. “Looking at the price of oil, I think I’ll need it to fill up my truck.” 

(Click here to read full story) 

(Photo: Reuters)

Last year, a tax refund might have been a perfect excuse to finally splurge on that luxurious Coach handbag, or dinner at that hot new restaurant downtown.

This year, that tax refund check likely means another sobering trip to the grocery store or gas station.

With shoppers feeling the burden of rising food costs, high gasoline prices, a slumping housing market, a weakening jobs picture, and the possiblity of a recession, many intend to use their tax refund this year to cover everyday expenses.

According to the Discover U.S. Spending Monitor – a monthly index of consumer spending intentions and capacity based on 15,000 interviews – of the 61 percent of adults surveyed who said they expect a tax refund this year, nearly 64 percent said they will use that cash to help pay for basic household expenses like gas, groceries or mortgages, or pay down credit card debt. 

Only 16 percent of consumers intend to put their refunds into savings, while 8.1 percent said they would use it to take a personal or family vacation.

So…how do you intend to spend your tax refund?

(Photo: Reuters)