Archived IMT (2009.02.12)

The role of holiday discounts and usage of gift cards was clearly evidenced the unexpected 1.0% increase in US January retail sales since furniture & home and building materials were the only two major categories not having risen between December and January (atypical destinations of gift card shopping), while the highest percentage increases occurred in electronics and gasoline stores, two sectors typical of holiday spending/sales. Gold cheers the combination of better than exp data and prolonged nervousness in equities, pushing the Gold/Oil ratio to a fresh 10-year high of 27.