Mike Shedlock
Mish’s Global Economic Trend Analysis
August 27, 2010
Mish’s Global Economic Trend Analysis
August 27, 2010
Signs of weak consumer discretionary spending are popping up in multiple places. For example Subscriber growth suddenly stops for cable TV industry
According to data gathered by market research firm SNL Kagan, cable companies saw a noticeable drop in the total number of subscribers during the second quarter of 2010, a first for an industry that has thus far seen nothing but growth.Exodus of Small Retailers Amidst Signs of "Free Rent"
The number of cable subscribers dropped by 711,000, according to SNL Kagan, with six out of eight cable providers reporting their worst quarterly subscriber losses to date. Other parts of the industry were able to add just enough subscribers to make the net loss more like 216,000. Cable's share of the pay-TV market dropped slightly too, from 63.6 percent to just 61 percent during the quarter.
The Toledo Blade comments 'Free rent' signs of trouble
Commercial real estate agent Joe Belinske never thought retail life could be like it is today on Monroe Street near Westfield Franklin Park mall. "Monroe Street used to rent itself. People never put out 'For Lease' sign. You didn't have to market it," said Mr. Belinske of CB Richard Ellis/Reichle Klein, a Toledo commercial real estate firm.10 Leading Retailers Close Stores
But these days all along the Monroe Street-Talmadge Avenue corridor - the Toledo area's crown jewel of commercial real estate - times are tough. "For Lease" signs have proliferated on Monroe from Sylvania Avenue past Talmadge to the Target shopping plaza. Some of the signs feature a shocking indicator of hard times: "Free rent."
Area rents have fallen significantly, and what was the price for hidden space in strip malls that looked away from the road, is the going price for better sites that look straight out onto Monroe.
Several large signature properties - the closed Circuit City store and former Lone Star Steakhouse on Monroe, and the Smokey Bones Barbeque and Grill on Talmadge - have remained closed for more than 18 months.
Also worrisome, commercial real estate experts say, is it seems like more small retailers have left the retail corridor than have arrived in the last few years.
Daily Finance reports 10 Big Retailers Closing Stores
Both Saks (SKS) and Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) said they were closing stores in several parts of the country. Meanwhile, other stores like the struggling Blockbuster video rental chain, continue to slash stores by the dozens. American Apparel (APP), which is close to defaulting on its loans, just may be next.Retail Closing Scorecard
Consumers just aren't shopping the way they used to. Even Wal-Mart Stores (WMT), which typically fares well during tough economic times, is worried. "The slow economic recovery will continue to affect our customers, and we expect they will remain cautious about spending," said president and CEO Mike Duke in a statement that was released during the company's second quarter earnings report.
Saks 5: The lux department store company plans to close two Saks Fifth Avenue stores in Plano, Texas, and Mission Viejo, Calif. That's in addition to stores in San Diego, Portland, Ore., and Charleston, S.C., that Saks closed a month earlier. CEO Steve Sadove said there may be more store closings to come this year.
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