NEW YORK–Carl Steidtmann, chief economist for Deloitte, said even when the economic picture improves, the debt-laden consumer will likely never return to their rampant spending ways.
A period of “hedonistic gluttony” has come to a screeching halt, Steidtmann said during a session entitled, Weathering the Storms: How to Navigate a Turbulent Economy.
What’s more, the troubled retail industry will also never be the same. Steidtmann said he expects retailers to operate in a “non-growth” environment even after an economic recovery that will not be driven by consumer spending.
What’s more, people will downsize to smaller homes and will need less merchandise. As the credit markets continue to tighten, retailers will be unable to expand and “many malls will go dark,” he said.
By contrast, more manufacturing will come back to the United States as efforts are made to “roll back free trade,” Steidtmann said.