The Latest: Retailers get hammered in premarket trading

NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on retail sales (all times local):
9:25 a.m.
Unemployment hasn’t been so low in years, wages are rising, consumer confidence is high and gasoline is cheap, creating high expectations for department stores this holiday season.  
That’s not what investors got in numbers released Thursday. 
Department stores fell sharply before the opening bell Thursday, with bellwether Macy’s down nearly 19 percent after posting worse-than-expected