Do these people not realise they may need their hard earned cash at a later date?

But under this government savers are being punished and profligate borrowers and spenders are rescued. Who is going to save. We who were brought up to save for the future and only buy what we could afford are lost!

Richard, Alicante, Spain

90% off ..Really??
What rubbish...
Gullible people buying what they don't need.
Global greed has ruined us all

rick, newcastle, uk

Of course retailers don't make 90% profits, and they aren't making a profit when they discount 90%, or even 50%. Retailing is a notoriously thin-margin business. They are taking a loss because they are desperate for cash, to pay their ongoing costs.

Angus79, London, UK

The sales have been a wonderful boon to us students. I got myself a whole new wardrobe courtesy of 70% discounts at various stores. It'll be a few years yet before I hit the job market and hope things are more stable then when I become a taxpayer and join the ranks of people tearing their hair out

Tim, York, England

So Gordon's plan is to encourage everyone to max out their credit cards by buying more tat they don't need - which might just be the root cause of all our problems in the first place? Spending money they doesn't exhist, ventured by fractional reserves that don't exhist, by bank that soon wont exhist

Christopher, Notts,

If you have cash and a secure job, enjoy. If you don't, start living within your means. Why prop up business/activity that nobody needs? Time to look after food production and distribution I think - back to basics. If it gets cold, put another sweater on and ride your bike, grow some veg etc.

Joe Jckson, Newcastle, UK

Retailers want a bailout? Hilarious. The only reason the banking system received a lifeline is because the banking sector operates a very special role in free market based economies. Without credit creation via the banking system we'd have much lower growth and much higher unemployment.

Daniel, London,

My advise to the british public. Live within your means. As long as we spend money we don't have we will experience more bad busts. This is a reality check for all of us. We should strike a balance on spending money we have and saving some of the money we have.

Margaret, London,

So a few billionaire retailers become millionaire retailers ... who cares. They don't even pay tax here. Save your money - you're going to need it in about 6 months time more than you do today! We all know that the "sale stock" is just cheaper, newly bought in stock that they don't ordinarily stock

Daniel, London,

The mad spending spree reflects the strong greed culture of our society. People are not buying to satisfy their needs. Items are bought because of their low price and most of them will never be used. We create massive waste in the name of consumerism and political encouraged debt spending hysteria.

Jim Wills, Brisbane, Australia

What's the point of slashing prices when all that encourages is more consumer credit? Which in turn can't be paid, and will result in record insolvencies and reposessions/defaults. Which in turn harms our economy and society a dozen times more than losing a few thousand £5 p/h jobs staffed by kids.

Christopher, Notts,

The trumpeted price cuts are the same old marketing ploy: in huge letters '50% off' is preceded by 'up to' in tiny letters. You get into the store and find nothing of value has been cut by 50%. The media are playing their game with this talk of doom-laden bargains. People are falling for it.

Robert Cookson, Milton Keynes, UK

Bad retail sales do not recognize the real cyclical nature of the problems the world faces. Its the total amount of debt versus GDP that is at a cyclical high. You can't spend yourself rich, which is what central bankers the world over are trying to do. All that is left the pain of unravelling debt

Joe T, Omaha Nebraska, USA

People just dont get it ...Its all very well saying save & dont spend , but if people dont spend business go bust & people lose jobs . If people lose jobs theres less money to spend so more people lose jobs ,Its a vicious circle created by EVERYONE , & credits the only way to fund it . Thats life...

Steve, New Zealand,

Ryan - The problem basically exists 'cos people were spending money they didn't have in the first place, (credit cards) and when the banks came to ask for it back, they couldn't pay. The economies 'boom' has been built on people spending money they didn't have & still don't, understand the problem?

Daniel Tyler, Margate, UK

I am sick to death of some of the negative attitudes expressed. It's like a sick joy that economy is going through a hard time. Everyone has worked in or knows of someone that has worked in or works in retail. It is an extremely important fabric of the nation. Lets try to focus on fixing it.

Annie, Co. Kildare,

It is utterly obscene to see people spending like this. They must be young mainly, or expect to be on benefits soon. I couldnt conceivably contemplate spending money at the moment , after Christmas, as an ordinary middle class person. We have bills to pay, and Gordon Brown to afford.

Andrew, canterbury,

Haroon Abbasi is correct the UK will go bankrupt, but its not the Govt don't care. Their options are:
Increase rates and cut spending - reward the thrifty and penalise the profligate. Or drop rates and pump money in to inflate away the value of debt.
As Govt is biggest debtor, which is more likely?

jb, Seef, Bahrain

I love it! Finally some payback for rip off Britain.

ray, London, UK

To be honest, Zavvi collapsing could have been predicted years ago. The market has changed: very few people buy CDs or DVDs in shops. Adapt or die. It is wrong to expect the government to bailout companies that have an unsustainable business model. This is the market at it's most brutal.

Lisa, London,

Media hype, basically, encouraged by retailers who want everyone to think something unusual is happening this year. Stay in and watch a Saturday movie, folks; you're being conned.

Joe, Manchester,

Buy British - please give examples, particularly with electronics, of British made consumer durables. Haroon you have got it right made. 2009 the year the UK will go bankrupt!!

Rohansrider, Bedford, UK

The fact that retailers can discount at 50% or more shows what bloody rip off merchants they were when times were better. I'm not interested in the tat usually on offer in the post Christmas sales.

Dr Nick Ashley, Huntingdon,

There is no sterling crisis. The currency is simply 'trending' down against a basket of currencies. A while ago the yen was the villian. Now it's the hero.

Calm down dear, it's only a cycle...

John, London,

These people are not spending their hard earned cash, they are still spending on their credit cards and increasing their debit. Old habits die hard. We are still living in a spiral of debt, which will continue until the population realise how very serious the situation is.

Rod, Billericay, Essex

Probably some shops are selling at a loss. That's not a sustainable long term situation, but unless they get cash now to pay staff and bills they have no long term future anyway. In normal times they would try for a bridging loan, but who would lend to the next Woolies or Zavvi?

John Webster, Aylesbury,

There may have been some massive reductions on prize items but there always is. I walked around Manchester yesterday and there was absolutely nothing different from last year or the year before. For someone with my conservative taste in clothes and no interest in the latest iPod whatever - boring.

Joe, Manchester,

Isn't spending money we don't have how we got into this mess in the first place ?

Simon Sansbury, Portsmouth,

Isn't this exactly what's meant to happen? the government lowers VAT, everybody spends money, confidence is restored, the banks lend, celestial choirs sing and the world is perfect again!!

We need people spending money so i don't understand where paddy is coming from!!

Ryan, uttoxeter,

I think giving credits to customers was a big mistake banks had made in the past.
Along with shops banks motivated customers to spend money that customers never owned, they just put customers in debts, and didn't care if customers would ever returned money to banks.
Nice....

Ulyana, London, UK

If they can afford 90% price cuts, they've conned us for ever. Which, of course, is exactly what the whole economy was based upon. So let them have it.
The whole scam will be up and running again shortly anyway, because no one learns from these greed-based mistakes in the first place.

Jerzy, Kenmore, UK

Other countries could soon be very envious of the weak pound.

Who is going to buy Japanese goods in the New Year?

Who is going to go on holiday to the Eurozone in 2009?

Buy British and go on holiday in the UK.

Fred, Moray, Scotland

If they are worried about a loss and offer a discount to entice customers they still need to be making a profit. Otherwise its shooting yourself in the foot. So if they can do this offering 90% off it means they have been royally ripping us off.

And they want a taxpayers paid for bailout?

Anthony Lester, Brum,

Businesses are suffering because of a plethora of increased bank fees and charges, massively increased rents from greedy shopping centre and other property owners, taxes of all description (gov't and councils) and silly 'elf and safety costs. Plus, they have had unsustainable profit expectations.

Padraig, Perth, Australia

"Our current sterling crisis means a massive reduction in the Uk's wealth and ability to buy goods few of which we manufacture."

- Haroon Abbasi, london,

No it doesn't. Stop doom-mongering. Sterling has weakened and in the future will strengthen. No big deal.

Matthew Cousins, Sutton, UK

The year 2008 saw a transformation of a worse-than-expected economic condition into a collateral damage which the sub-prime mortgage crisis wreaked havoc in almost every sector, causing tens of millions of people around the world losing confidence amid an already acknowledged economic slowdown.

JOHN, Shanghai, China

Note the weakening pound is causing difficulties for retailers who are reliant on importing goods from overseas. This situation is completely unsustainable. Our current sterling crisis means a massive reduction in the Uk's wealth and ability to buy goods few of which we manufacture.

Haroon Abbasi, london,

Consumeristic sheep grazing on the shopping malls.

Ernesto Forcheto, Gijon, Spain

What makes a person buy something they don't need, just because it's in a sale?

Do these people not realise they may need their hard earned cash at a later date?

Don't they believe all the dire economic forecasts?

Oh I forgot, it's the old syndrome, 'the it won't happen to me one'

Paddy, Cork, Ireland

Our economy is headed for disaster. People are as madly materialistic as ever yet we produce nothing. The pound is plunging (1.04 to the Euro today) yet the utterly useless BoE and Brown don't care.

Bring on lower rates, more spending we can't afford. Bring on bankrupt Britain 2009...

Haroon Abbasi, London,