Percentage of U.S. respondents who think saving money is at least somewhat important to them in their everyday life, including nearly half (46 percent) who think it's very important and look for opportunities to save money every day, according to RetailMeNot's International Shoppers Trend Report: 76
Ranks of the American, Indian, Australian and Canadian on the list of international shoppers who think saving is important: 1 (tie), 3, 4
Source: RetailMeNot.com.
Rank of Boston on the list of the most expensive cities in the United States based on the cost of lodging, according to a survey from CheapHotels.org: 1
In Boston, amount travelers will have to pay per night for the most affordable double room at a hotel with three stars or better: $242
Ranks of New York City, Nashville and San Francisco on the list: 2, 3, 4
Source: Cheaphotels.org.
Ranks of strengthening the economy, improving the job situation, and reducing the federal deficit on the list what Americans say should be the top priorities for the president and Congress, according to Pew Research: 1, 2, 3
Percentage of Americans who cited "reducing the federal deficit" in 2009 when President Obama began his first term: 53
Source: PEW Internet and American Life Project.
Percentage of Americans who will give out candy to trick-or-treaters this Halloween, according to a Kmart survey: 51
Percentage who will decorate their homes: 34
Percentage who will dress up for the occasion: 26
Percentage who will attend a Halloween party: 22
Source: Kmart.
Ranks of Halloween, Christmas and Valentine's Day, on the list of the most popular holidays among 15- to 25-year-olds, according to a survey conducted by ooVoo: 1, 2, 3
Source: ooVoo LLC.
Average amount of money parents spend annually on their kids -- housing (whether renovating a room, expanding their home or moving to a larger house), child care, transportation, food, entertainment, health care and clothing -- according to a report released by BabyCenter.com: $13,000
Percentage of moms who feel that parents spend too much on their kids -- a 22 percent increase since 2012: 66
Source: BabyCenter LLC.
Percentage of women managers and executives who believe that "image" is more than twice as likely to be a factor for women than men for career progression, according to an Ipsos Reid poll of female executives commissioned on behalf of Randstad: 90
Percentage of respondents who feel that overall image (looks, personal image, etc.) is a factor and has an impact on career progression for men: 37
Percentage of respondents who believe that women need to work harder and longer hours than men in order to prove themselves in management and executive roles: 77
Source: Ipsos Reid Public Affairs.
Number of work days lost due to the impact of a severe flu season in 2012–2013, according to Walgreens Flu Impact Report: 230 million
Amount of money lost in wages: $8.5 billion
Number of vacations impacted: 11 million
Source: Walgreens.
Percentage of retail hiring managers who reported that they plan to hire seasonal workers this year, up from 36 percent last year and 29 percent in 2011, according to CareerBuilder's annual survey: 39
Percentage of employers hiring seasonal staff who will pay $10 or more per hour: 51
Source: CareerBuilder.com.
Ranks of Minion from "Despicable Me," Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn, Minnie Mouse, Catwoman and Poison Ivy on the list of the top costume searches for Halloween, according to data from Experian Marketing Services: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Ranks of Minnie Mouse, Fairy, Spiderman and Batman on the list of the top adult searches: 1, 2, 3, 4
Source: Experian Marketing Services.
Idle Thought
"You can out-distance that which is running after you, but not what is running inside you." -- Rwandan proverb
(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)