Despite omicron, business activity in the US rebounded at Christmas

Americans didn’t let the omicron variant stop them from going out for last-minute Christmas shopping and entertainment.

Activity from businesses, including restaurants and retail stores, increased 4.8% in the week leading up to Christmas compared to the beginning of the month, according to figures from SafeGraph, which tracks geolocation data for mobile phones.

Pedestrian traffic peaked in the middle of the week before slowing on December 24, when some businesses closed for the holidays.

The figures add to recent signs that American consumers have been eager to get out despite the appearance of the highly contagious omicron variant about a month ago.

Although COVID-19 cases are up 60% from last week in the country and hospitals are treating more patients, omicron appears to cause milder symptoms than the delta variant, and the CDC shortened the isolation period to five days.

Shoppers flocked to discount stores in December, with visits increasing over the pre-pandemic period, according to separate data.

Consumer confidence rose for the month from a decade low in November, although inflation is dampening the outlook.

Overall, economists expect consumer spending to hold up well into 2022 as savings are released and the job market holds firm. Demand for jobs, in particular, is high: Applications for unemployment benefits unexpectedly declined last week, despite the rise in COVID-19 cases.