Report: Holiday spending rose 3%

Futures are pointed higher heading into the last trading week of 2020. The Dow is up 6% for the year, the S&P grew a robust 15%, both after losing more than 30% at their lowest points in March. And the Nasdaq rocketed up 43% in 2020, after dropping roughly 23% early in the pandemic.
A report from Mastercard finds U.S. retail sales rose 3% during this year’s expanded holiday shopping season from October 11 to December 24, powered by a pandemic-driven shift toward online shopping. Its data shows holiday e-commerce sales made up 20% of total retail sales this year.
No rest for FedEx, UPS and U-S Postal Service workers this week as record returns begin for all those record online purchases. CBRE expects $70 billion dollars in online returns this year, up from $43 billion in 2019.
A devoted fan of Tulane University athletics who passed away last year has left the school more than $1.5 million dollars. The bulk of the bequest will establish a fund to expand mental health support of Tulane’s 350 student-athletes. Alan Rosenbloum received his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Tulane in 1961.