So much for a nice, quiet Thanksgiving week. Between the back-and-forth negotiations surrounding a bailout of Ireland and yet another escalation of tensions between North and South Korea, recent sessions have featured no shortage of action. Now investors turn their attention to the U.S. consumer, preparing to analyze spending habits during the make-it-or-break-it shopping season. According to the National Retail Federation, the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas accounted for more than 19% of total sales last year. For some companies, the holiday season can account for between 25% and 40% of annual sales, highlighting the importance of the next few weeks for the retail corner of the economy. Not surprisingly, the 2010 version of the holiday shopping season has seen a continued push via an aggressive marketing campaign. Many stores have announced that they will open earlier than in previous years, while some–including Toys R Us–are actually planning to begin offering [...] Click here to read the original article on ETFdb.com. Related Stories: “Super Saturday” Storm Threatens Retail ETFs Tough Times For Retail ETFs Strong September Sales Boost Retail ETFs