By MAE ANDERSON, The Associated Press

NEW YORK — Snowy predictions in the Northeast may have storybook holiday charm, but they're not raising the spirits of retailers counting on shoppers to give them a brisk finish to the season.

A wet storm that hit the Southeast beginning late Thursday could bring snow to much of the Atlantic Seaboard beginning Saturday, The National Weather Service warned.

Washington, D.C., could get 10 to 16 inches of snow, and the New York region 5 to 10 inches, although the track of the storm is still uncertain, so much less snow is also a possibility.

For retailers already facing restrained holiday shoppers, stormy weather on the last Saturday before Christmas, sometimes the busiest shopping day of the year, could lead to the loss of sales they won't get back, experts said.

"A snowstorm like this is not good news," said Scott Bernhardt of weather research firm Planalytics. "This is 'Super Saturday,' we're talking about well over $1 billion traded on this day."

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