SALES rose this year during the holiday shopping season even as Americans wrestled with elevated prices for many groceries and other necessities, according to new data.
Holiday sales from the beginning of November through Christmas Eve climbed 3.8 percent, outpacing the 3.1-percent increase from a year earlier, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, which tracks all kinds of payments including cash and debit cards. The last five days of the season accounted for 10 percent of the spending.