Business & Finance: Buy Only What You Need

In full-page ads last week, Manhattan’s Macy’s, world’s largest department store, asked: “Why are you buying so much, New York? . . . It’s the beginning of fear-buying. Since Christmas the people of New York have been buying about 25% more goods in all department stores than they did at this time last year.”

All over the U.S., buying was high, though it was ebbing slightly. U.S. department-store sales last week were 31% higher than a year ago, v. 39% the week before. Said Macy’s: “Buy nothing out of fear. Buy only what you need or can use. But don’t buy one extra thing because of ‘what might happen.’ There are goods enough to satisfy our needs. But there can never be goods enough to satisfy our fears.”