Optimism Shines as National Retail Federation Forecasts Holiday Sales to Increase 4.1%

After a turbulent start to 2014, the National Retail Federation announced today it expects sales in November and December (excluding autos, gas and restaurant sales) to increase a healthy 4.1 percent to $616.9 billion, higher than 2013's actual 3.1 percent increase during that same time frame. Holiday sales on average have grown 2.9 percent over the past