Many Iowans are turning to the Internet to make their Christmas purchases this year, but an Iowa economist says good old-fashioned shopping is still the norm. Iowa State University Economist Ken Stone says on-line sales grab only a small piece of the pie at this point nationwide. Total retail sales nationwide this year amount to about three TRILLION dollars, while on-line sales are under 100-BILLION, or less than one percent. Many of the so-called “dot-com” companies have failed in the last year, but Stone says there are some good ones remaining. Books, apparels, and consumer electronics are still easily accessible over the Internet market. Stone says shoppers still like to be able to go into stores and see the merchandise they’re buying.
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