ShopperTrak predicts sales to be tough in Christmas this year

According to research company ShopperTrak, U.S. retailers will have to be a little more proactive in attracting sales for the Christmas season this year, reports say. The research company studies shopper data.

According to its reports, during the November and December holiday shopping period, sales in the category of general merchandise, apparel and accessories, furniture and other products will rise 2.4 percent (on y-o-y basis) , while the retail sales in the same period last year had risen 3 percent, reports suggest.

The report also predicted a 1.4 percent drop in total retail traffic from the same period last year which saw an increase of 2.5 percent in comparison to its previous year.

The report noted that although the economy is slowly recovering, the consumer is cautious in spending, reports say.