1. Black Friday biopsy: How much did Americans splurge on shopping’s biggest weekend? Decent, but not if you’re a brick-and-mortar location.
Buoyed by strong online traffic, sales surpassed $3 billion for the first time with roughly $1 billion of it coming from mobile devices. But data shows that sales from physical retailers dipped 5 percent over the two days, while the number of transactions fell 8 percent as shoppers skipped the crowds to shop at home.
Now we’ll wait to see if customers open their purses and wallets on Cyber Monday.
2. O’Hare airport strike: Hundreds of workers at Chicago O’Hare International Airport plan to strike on Tuesday. The airport is a hub for both American Airlines and United Airlines.
Janitors, baggage handlers, cabin cleaners and wheelchair attendants are asking for a $15 hourly wage. The strike won’t affect more critical workers, such as air traffic controllers and security screeners.
3. Trump appointments: President-elect Donald Trump could appoint key members of his economic team this week.
Billionaire investor Wilbur Ross is considered the leading contender for commerce secretary. Steven Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs exec turned Hollywood producer, is said to be the top pick for Treasury secretary now that Jonathan Gray, who heads real estate for private equity firm Blackstone, said he was out of the running last week.
4. Jobs report: Trump, who says he’ll spend $1 trillion on infrastructure projects to boost U.S. employment, will also get an updated set of jobs numbers on Friday.
In October, the U.S. economy added a solid 161,000 jobs. Unemployment edged down to 4.9% — now half of what it was in 2009, when unemployment peaked at 10%.
5. Coming this week:
Monday – Cyber Monday
Tuesday – GDP report; Chicago O’Hare airport workers go on strike
Wednesday – OPEC meeting, U.K. economic forecast
Thursday – Auto sales
Friday – Jobs report
