What's on Sale in December

What's on sale in December December sales are a mixed bag for shoppers. You're liable to find a sackful of gifts, a few necessities and some leftovers sporting attractive new price tags.

And this month, the sale options range from glittering extravagance (diamonds, anyone?) to the deliciously down-to-earth (fruits and nuts). When it comes to getting the best deals on December retail bargains, time often is money, says Daniel Butler, vice president of retail operations for the National Retail Federation. No matter what your faith, you're likely to find your deepest discounts during the 10 days before and after Christmas, he says. With retailers trying to woo last-minute shoppers, prices from Dec. 15 on "are really competitive," he says.

Looking for a bargain this month? Here are about a dozen items on which consumers can likely score a good deal in December.

Diamonds and other jewels "December is the biggest month for diamond sales of the whole year," Butler says.

While not all diamonds are on sale, when you do find a bargain, it's likely to be in the 30 percent to 50 percent off range, he says.

Consumers should see some bargain prices on trendy jewelry, too, Butler says. With trendy jewelry and "bridge" jewelry (a category between trendy and fine jewelry, often with semiprecious stones), shoppers could find discounts from 25 percent to 50 percent off "depending on what it is," he says.

No matter what type of jewelry you might be seeking, bargains are available, Butler says. "It's such a competitive time," he says. Retailers "are trying to capture the business."

Toys and books Rather than actual markdowns on toys during the holidays, you can often expect to see something called "value pricing," Butler says. That means the item is brought in at a low price -- often because stores are getting volume discounts. And, with toys in December, those prices can be up to 30 percent to 40 percent less than the toy's normal price, Butler says.

Consumers can also expect to find some specials on educational toys. "Those might not be promoted as heavily," Butler says. But in many cases, shoppers will see discounts that are 20 (percent) to 30 percent less than normal, he says.

And if you have a bookworm on your list, rejoice.

A lot of the value-priced books will be up to 50 percent off, Butler says. Discounts will most often be for "books that are of interest but not the most current books," he says.

Televisions and electronic games It's a good time to buy a television "because it was kind of a tough year for television sales," Butler says. "What's driving interest is that people are really drawn to larger screens." You can expect to see 20 percent to 40 percent off, he says.

Jim Barry, spokesman for the Consumer Electronics Association, predicts that television prices will be about 10 percent lower than they were in November, with a good selection of LCD and plasma televisions in the 40-inch range for $500 or less.

A particularly good buy: 3-D technology. Because it hasn't been a hot commodity for consumers, the difference in price for a 3-D model is likely to be about $30 to $90 per set, he says.

Electronic games are a good buy this time of year, Butler says -- consoles as well as used games. Expect to save 10 percent to 25 percent on gaming systems and used games.

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