In October, as global financial markets plunged amid multiple bank bailouts, U.S. consumers showed marked caution at the cash register, focusing their purchases at food, drug, and mass merchandiser stores on basic necessities: food, medicines, and other household items.
Edible essentials, like bread, milk, cheese, and fresh produce, were among the top retail categories for October, according to Nielsen. 
Discretionary items like carbonated beverages, candy, and snacks were also among the top sellers in October — but most of these categories showed year-over-year unit and dollar sales declines.
Top Categories: October 2008 (Dollar Sales: Food/Drug/Mass Merchandiser Sales)

Rank
(by 2008 Dollar Sales)
Top Food/Drug/Mass Merchandiser Sales Categories
(October 2008)
Dollar Sales:
4 …

According to data from Nielsen IAG, a CoverGirl tie-in with the CW’s “America’s Next Top Model” was the most recalled new “hybrid” ad during the four weeks between October 27 and November 23, 2008.
Hybrid Ads include customized ads, branded promos, vignettes, interstitials, and micro-series where sponsor messaging is combined with program or entertainment content.
Recall refers to the percentage of television viewers who can recall, within 24 hours, a hybrid ad’s sponsor.

According to data from Nielsen IAG, an Apple ad, in which “PC” offers “Mac” a cupcake to raise money to repair Vista, was the most recalled new “traditional” ad during the four weeks between October 20, and November 16, 2008.
Recall refers to the percentage of television viewers who can recall, within 24 hours, an ad’s sponsor.

According to data from Nielsen IAG, a Macy’s ad, in which celebrities confirm the existence of Santa Claus for a little girl, was the most liked new “traditional” ad during the four weeks between October 20 and November 16, 2008.
Likeability refers to the percentage of television viewers who report liking an ad “a lot” after viewing it, among those who are able to recall an ad’s brand.

Most U.S. consumers (86%) believe the country is currently in a recession, and more than half (54%) believe it will last longer than 12 months, Nielsen reported Monday.
The findings come from Nielsen’s Global Online Consumer Survey, conducted in 52 markets worldwide between September 22 and October 6, 2008.
Only 18% of respondents said they believe the recession will be over within a year.  Younger survey participants (ages 25 to 29) expressed the least amount of confidence, with just 6% saying the recession would be over within 12 months.  Older respondents (ages 65 and older) were …

According to data from Nielsen IAG, a Disney Parks ad inviting consumers to visit Disney theme parks for birthday celebrations was the most liked new “traditional” ad during the four weeks between September 15 and October 12, 2008.
Likeability refers to the percentage of television viewers who report liking an ad “a lot” after viewing it, among those who are able to recall an ad’s brand.

According to data from Nielsen IAG, a Volkswagen ad featuring actress Brooke Shields was the most recalled new “traditional” ad during the four weeks between September 15 and October 12, 2008.
Recall refers to the percentage of television viewers who can recall, within 24 hours, an ad’s sponsor.

Most global consumers agree that their countries have hit recession, but opinion on how long the recession will last remains mixed, Nielsen reported Wednesday.
While 53% of those surveyed by Nielsen think their country has hit a prolonged recession that will last more than 12 months, 18% of consumers, concentrated in a handful of emerging markets, like India, Vietnam, China, and Russia, told Nielsen they expect their countries to be out of recession within the next 12 months.
In contrast, consumers in Japan, Germany, Argentina, Mexico, Turkey, Italy, Taiwan, the U.S., and Spain were the …