RETAILING & MARKETING

Retail Sales Up Nationally after Holiday: U.S. retail sales on the day after Thanksgiving were up 5.1% compared to 1991, but declines were reported in Southern California, according to TeleCheck Services, a check acceptance company. Although the West posted a 2.2% increase, the San Francisco area’s 9.3% increase and Portland’s 6% increase were offset by San Diego’s 8.4% decline and Los Angeles’ 3.1% decline, reflecting Southern California’s continuing recessionary problems. “All of the regions posted increases, and the negative numbers in some cities are not necessarily a predictor of that city’s entire shopping season,” said William Ford, TeleCheck’s senior economic adviser. Regionally, the highest figure was recorded by retailers in the Midwest, where sales were up 10.2% from the same day last year.