21.   The Commerce Department reported last week that retail sales unexpectedly declined in November, the start of the traditionally lucrative holiday shopping season.

22.   The numbers various retailers released show total sales figures and what are called same-store or comparable-store figures for the five-week holiday shopping season.

23.   The strike comes a week before elections for major state and federal offices and on several volatile referendums, and on the eve of the crucial Christmas shopping season.

24.   There had been talk the Christmas holiday shopping season started slowly and then surged, fueling concern of accelerating inflation.

25.   Traders and investors will more likely be on the lookout for clues on how the final days of the holiday shopping season shape up.

26.   Under the old rules, we would be entering a great holiday shopping season.

27.   Well, as of this Saturday, shopping season officially opens.

28.   With the nation just beginning the holiday shopping season, analysts and economists are closely monitoring consumer spending, which accounts for two-thirds of economic growth.

29.   Year after year, merchants fatten their inventories in preparation for a blockbuster holiday shopping season, often slashing prices later when goods languish on the shelves.

30.   But early birds took advantage of the special deals they offered and avoided the crowds expected Friday, the official start of the holiday shopping season.