Check out the recession-battered consumer in a new Discover survey.

Consumer attitudes continue to weaken according to Discover’s U.S. Spending Monitor for July, as results fell for the second consecutive month to 83.5 (out of 100) from 85.6.

Translation: Growing pessimism about the economy and personal finances has more consumers planning overall spending cuts.

Only 21 percent expect to spend more in the month ahead, a 2-point decline from June.

“The optimism consumers showed about the economy during the spring has faded during the summer,” Discover Financial Services senior vice president Julie Loeger said in a statement. “Unemployment is still rising and while some are saying the worst is over, the majority of consumers surveyed … don’t feel that way. Until they do, consumers are unlikely to start spending again.”

It doesn’t appear that consumers are taking what they aren’t spending to the bank. Discover said 42 percent expect to save or invest less in the month ahead, tying a high for its monitor survey. Only 9 percent expect to save or invest more — you guessed it, a low for the survey.

Overall, 61 percent of those surveyed rated the current economic conditions as poor, a 2-point increase from June, Discover said. Only 32 percent of consumers surveyed rate their finances as good or excellent (another new low), while 25 percent rate them as poor (tying the high).

Meanwhile, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said planned playoffs at U.S. firms rose in July for the first time in six months, signaling more uneasy times for workers.

Also in the basket:

P&G profit falls, sales light, shares skid

Polo profit soars past Street view; shares up

Adidas Q2 beats estimates, says worst behind it

Dean Foods posts higher quarterly profit

Macy’s Adapts to Weaker Sales as Customers Seek Deals (Wall Street Journal)

(Reuters photo)

Check Out the drop in job cuts. 

U.S.-based employers announced fewer plans to slash jobs for the second month in a row in March, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.
 
In a new report, Challenger said employers announced 150,411 cuts in March, down 19.3 percent from the 186,350 cuts announced in February.  Plans to reduce staff were down in February too, which means we have seen the first two-month decrease in cuts since February-March 2007.

The March cuts were the lowest since October, when 112,884 planned job cuts were announced and come on the heels of a 23-percent decline recorded in February.

Yet, companies are still cutting much more jobs than they did a year ago.  In the first quarter 578,510 job cuts were announced, 188 percent more than the cuts announced in the first three months of 2008 and the largest quarterly total since 585,188 cuts were announced in the fourth quarter of 2001.

The government/non-profit sector set plans to cut more than 25,300 jobs in March, the biggest announcement in any area.
 
“State and local governments across the country are struggling with falling tax revenues as more and more people lose their jobs and homes,” said CEO John Challenger. He said state and local government should start to see “some relief” as the U.S. stimulus plan works its way into the economy.

Also in the basket:

Borders to cut 2009 costs by $120 million

Get “junk” food out of U.S. schools: PTA, diet group

Retail Fear and Closings in Las Vegas (WWD, subscription required)

Boats Too Costly to Keep Are Littering Coastlines (NY Times)

(Photo/Reuters)

It must have been a rough Monday for Estee Lauder and Elizabeth Arden.

One of their top clients, department store operator Macy’s Inc, announced a sweeping measure to consolidate its divisions into a single unit and slash about 7,000 jobs in an effort to cut costs.

A mere three days later, Estee and Arden both posted sharp declines in quarterly profits, and also announced job cuts. While Estee, known for the Clinique and Bobbi Brown brands, said it would shed about 2,000 jobs, Arden did not specify a number.

Both companies pointed to Macy’s reorganization plan during their conference call, but mum was the word when it came to revealing if their job cuts were in any way linked to the Macy’s news.

An Elizabeth Arden spokesman, Michael Fox, told us that the company was not inclined to share more.

Well, then it must be a coincidence.

In other news, Elizabeth Arden, famous for its Britney Spears perfume, said that while sales of her line of perfumes were down “as planned,” sales of the Britney brands have exceeded the company’s projections over the last few months. The company is hoping the trend continues over the next six months or year “as she has taken a more active role in her career.”

(Photo/Reuters)

Check out the not-so-chipper news in the retail world.

Restaurant chain Burger King reported lower profits and cut its full-year forecast due to the currency fluctuations, while cosmetics and perfume companies Estee Lauder and Elizabeth Arden rang up lower, albeit better-than-expected, profits and said they would cut jobs.

Indeed, retailers overall posted the second weakest monthly same-store sales performance since Thomson Reuters began tracking the data in 2000 as heavy job losses, weakness in the U.S. housing sector and the still-tight credit markets have many consumers closing their wallets.

In the mixed-bag camp, apparel retailer Gap saw same-store sales fall more than expected, but raised its full-year profit outlook.

There is some good news out there, however. 

Discount giant Wal-Mart posted a better-than-expected increase in sales at U.S. stores open at least a year, almost double what analysts had expected. Meanwhile, Kellogg’s quarterly profit rose and the cereal maker stood by its 2009 profit outlook, and department store operator Macy’s saw a smaller-than-expected decline in same-store sales and raised its fourth-quarter profit forecast.

Also in the basket:

Talbots announces cost cuts, $200 mln loan

Signet to cut costs as Q4 sales fall sharply

Flash is out for wealthy on Valentine’s Day

(Photo/Reuters)

Check out the stream of retailers rushing to announce job cuts and charges as they close out their fiscal years.

Late on Tuesday, Target said it would cut jobs, mainly at its headquarters in Minneapolis, while Best Buy (also headquartered in Minneapolis) said it planned involuntary layoffs after too few employees took voluntary exit packages.

The rush to downsize comes as many retailers approach Jan. 31, which marks the end of their fiscal year. With holiday sales at their worst in nearly four decades and the outlook for 2009 dimming by the day, retailers are trying to get the bad news out now so they can take charges in their fourth quarters.

The January surge of bad news was not completely unexpected.

In December, Reuters reported that U.S. retailers would speed up a wave of store closures, restructuring and job cuts to get a fresh start for 2009.

One retailer bucking the trend is Asda.

On Wednesday, Britain’s second-biggest grocer, (which is owned by Wal-Mart) said it plans to create about 7,000 jobs this year and committed to recruiting up to 3,000 long-term unemployed people for existing vacancies.

Also in the basket:

Big brands recruiting “Consumer Kids” to sell wares

Luxottica wins license for Tory Burch eyewear

Interstate Bakeries had $19.3 mln cash in December

FEATURE-How green is my wallet? Organic food growth slows

(Reuters photos)

Check out the retail belt tightening.

Not belt tightening by retail customers (if there are any left), but the latest round of cost cuts by retailers themselves.

Williams-Sonoma is cutting 18 percent of its workforce and also paired back capital spending.

Jones Apparel is cutting its capital spending plans to $45 million in 2009 from the $70 million it spent in 2008.

Brown Shoe: closing stores, cutting jobs.

Children’s Place: relocating its e-commerce business and cutting about 350 jobs.

Retail just suffered through the worst holiday season in at least four decades and there are no signs of a rebound anytime soon, so job cuts and cost reductions are expected.

But as retailers and other industries cut jobs, the question remains: who will be able to shop to help spur a retail recovery?

Also in the basket:

Brinker posts second quarter net loss

Sony warns of $2.9 bln loss, steps up restructuring

How green is my orange? (N.Y. Times)

(Photo: Reuters)

Check out job cuts in retail spreading across the globe.

Last week, Neiman Marcus and Saks outlined plans to cut jobs. On Monday, it was Europe’s turn to join the fray.

Metro AG,  Germany’s top listed retailer, plans to cut 15,000 jobs or about 5 percent of its global workforce by 2012 amid a broader restructuring program, a source close to the company told Reuters on Tuesday. The company, which owns supermarkets and department stores, employs about 300,000 people in 2,200 stores across 32 countries.

Meanwhile, British luxury goods firm Burberry announced up to $49 million of savings, including 540 job losses in the UK and Spain.

Burberry beat forecasts with a 9 percent rise in third-quarter revenue, helped by deep discounting. But the 153-year-old maker of upmarket raincoats and handbags said double-digit percentage growth in Asia and most of Europe was offset by a double-digit decline in the United States and a fall of over 20 percent in Spain.

“It’s extremely challenging, volatile and difficult,” said Chief Financial Officer Stacey Cartwright. ”It’s not about consumers trading down. It’s more about there being less footfall around and when consumers come in, they’re buying less.”

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More peanut products recalled as probe continues

Crunched fashionistas still want novelty-experts

Australia’s wine industry at a crisis crossroad

TomTom cuts guidance, still within bank covenants

Centralizing at Hudson’s Bay Trading Co. (WWD, subscription required)

(Photo: Reuters)

Check out how consumers feel about shopping at malls.

Auto dealers and reporters are popular targets for hate mail. But mall operators may have reason to fear joining them if a new study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and the Verde Group, a market research consultancy, is to be believed.

Almost eight of every 10 people surveyed faced a problem at the mall, citing such issues as a limited choice of places to eat, lack of variety of stores, parking difficulties and a shortage of restrooms.

But keeping shoppers happy will be critical this holiday shopping season.

U.S. consumers, who spend an average of $150 per mall visit according to the study, have curtailed shopping due to the recession, the weak U.S. housing market and high food costs, raising concerns about holiday sales. More and more people are scared about their jobs — another factor in the spending slowdown.

“These findings should be a call to action for mall developers who are failing to quench this thirst for excitement,” said Wharton Professor Stephen Hoch in a statement. “Malls can’t be mundane in this economic climate.”

Mall operators, already struggling to lure shoppers, are facing a dwindling pool of retail tenants, as many bankrupt stores like Steve & Barry’s have begun to shut their doors.

Also in the basket:

Kroger 4th-qtr outlook disappoints; shares fall

Jarden sees 2009 revenue in excess of $5 billion

Restraint Feel Right, Doesn’t It (New York Times)

Happy Holidays! But Don’t Expect Too Much From Santa Claus (Wall Street Journal)

(Photo/Reuters)

Check out the disappearing jobs.
 
Job cuts in November soared to their highest monthly level since 1992, according to outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
 
A total of 181,671 job cuts were announced in the month, 61 percent more than in October, the firm said.
 
Employers have now announced 1,057,645 job cuts in 2008, just shy of the 1,072,054 layoffs announced in 2005, which was the last time that annual job cuts surpassed 1 million, Challenger said.
 
The financial sector was the biggest culprit, led by Citigroup’s plan to cut more than 50,000 jobs.
 
But job cuts are happening all over and retail lost another 11,000 jobs last month.
 
Things are also likely to get worse in the job market. December is typically one of the larger job-cutting months of the year, CEO John Challenger noted.
 
Also in the basket:
 
Crocs and Skechers settle patent suit
 
US retail tracker slashes holiday forecast
 
Shalom, Christmas Shoppers: Israelis Sell Cosmetics, Toys at the Mall (WSJ)
 
(Reuters photo)