By KWMU
St. Louis, MO – At least one local economist is downplaying the dire reports about retail sales this holiday season. Some news outlets have reported a one-percent increase in sales this year over last year, which would be the worst performance in 30 years. But Chris Varvares, president of Macroeconomic Advisors in St. Louis, says those reports are based upon premature numbers. Varvares says that until all of the data is accumulated from the holiday season - which runs through the end of January - it's difficult to form any conclusions about retail sales.