The leader of the Iowa Retail Federation expects consumers in the Hawkeye State spent about as much money on the holidays as consumers nationwide. Federation president Jim Henter says it’s been a profitable couple of months in Iowa. The National Retail Federation predicts Americans spent 184-BILLION dollars during November and December — an increase of between six and eight percent from last year. Henter says Iowa should mirror that percentage. He says yesterday was big for day-after-Christmas sales. Some analysts predict there’ll be another boost in sales early next month after all fears about a Y-2-K disaster are laid to rest. Henter says it’s possible there’ll be another resurgence in consumer activity next week. While the final holiday numbers aren’t expected for at least a week, Henter predicts Iowans spent at least six percent more on holiday gifts this year than they did last year.
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