Sunday Spotlight, ADVISORY

EDITORS:

The following story will move Saturday as this week's Sunday Spotlight, a feature showcasing the best off-the-news enterprise in the AP report:

VIRUS OUTBREAK-STRUGGLING RETAILERS

The accelerating surge of coronavirus cases across the U.S. is causing an existential crisis for America’s retailers just as the critically important holiday shopping season nears. Caught between a wave of new government-imposed restrictions and their own customers’ fear of infection, retailers are trying to reassure consumers about their in-store safety precautions, while also heavily promoting online sales. The relative willingness or ability of America’s consumers to spend will largely determine whether the economy can sustain a recovery from the pandemic recession. By Christopher Rugaber and Anne D’Innocenzio. UPCOMING: 900 words, photos.

—The AP