Forecast predicts holiday spending in Ohio to increase by 4.5 percent

YOUNGSTOWN

The Ohio Council of Retail Merchants’ research arm, Focus on Ohio’s Future, and the University of Cincinnati Economics Center released their 2014 Ohio Holiday Spending Forecast this morning.

Retail spending for Ohio in the months of November and December will increase by 4.5 percent from last year. Retail spending in the Youngstown metropolitan statistical area will increase by 1.3 percent.

“We feel very optimistic about this year’s forecast,” said Michael Jones, director of research at the University of Cincinnati Economics Center.