Retail outlets would do well to begin preparing for the holiday rush as soon as possible. Consumers may be spending more purchasing gifts this season than they have in any recent years past.

Retail sales during November and December are expected to increase by roughly four percent when compared to figures from 2012, for a projected revenue of more than $600 billion, according to a report from the National Retail Federation. Holiday sales in 2012 had increased from previous years by 3.5 percent, and the ten-year average holiday sales growth is 3.3 percent, indicating that this years increase will have more customers rushing to credit card payment processing terminals than ever before.

"Our forecast is a realistic look at where we are right now in this economy - balancing continued uncertainty in Washington and an economy that has been teetering on incremental growth for years," said Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation. "Overall, retailers are optimistic for the 2013 holiday season, hoping political debates over government spending and the debt ceiling do not erase any economic progress we've already made."

The Consumer Electronics Association also recently published similar findings, noting that total retail sales for November and December are expected to increase four percentfrom the revenue collected last year. However, much like Shay, representatives of the CEA warned that current political and economic situations could lead to consumers spending much less than expected. 

"Overall retail holiday sales growth looks healthy for 2013," said Shawn DuBravac, chief economist and senior director of research at the CEA. "However, significant economic risks remain unresolved, and these could still negatively impact how much consumers decide to spend this holiday season."