Last week was the worst pre-holiday sales week in 40 years, but analysts predict more to come

<p>December has been a brutal month for the industry, and for all of retailing, as several key reports released today and this week show.</p> <p>It was the worst Christmas week for retailers since 1970. Consumer confidence is dropping, not reviving, as some economists predicted as recently as yesterday. And a new report predicts that 73,000 more stores will close in the next six months. Elsewhere, Germany looks to report a slight gain in holiday sales, but the rest of Europe is down.</p> <h2>U.S. shopping center holiday comps</h2> <p> </p>