MarketPulse

DANGER IN TOYLAND

A consumer advocacy group is warning against playthings with potential danger as the holiday shopping season ramps up. Boston-based World Against Toys Causing Harm Inc. announced its annual list of the “10 Worst Toys” of the year. The list includes cute plastic animals with tiny accessories that pose a choking hazard, Black Panther-inspired claws with the potential to cause facial or eye injuries, and green slime that could be harmful if swallowed. There are an estimated 240,000 toy-related injuries to children each year, according to the organization. The Toy Association, which represents toy manufacturers, called the list needlessly alarmist. It said parents and others should always choose age-appropriate toys and encourage safe play.

SOUVENIR SLUMP HITS NYC

There isn’t much love lately for the ubiquitous “I (HEART) NY” shirts in New York City’s eclectic souvenir shops. The shops, which often include tourist-themed gifts, luggage and even electronics, are hurting as tourism slumps in The Big Apple because of the virus pandemic. Shelves of Big Apple fridge magnets, NYPD ballcaps and Statue of Liberty figurines are relatively untouched at many stores as owners struggle to remain open. City tourism agency NYC &

Co. is now projecting visitors will total about

23 million this year, an

“unmatched drop” from over 66 million last year, though the agency forecasts the numbers will rebound to reach new records by 2024.

SINKING SEAFOOD IN 2020

The U.S. seafood industry is barely treading water this year as consumer demand, along with imports and exports, dives. Demand at restaurants fell more than 70% during the early months of the pandemic, according to scientists who recently published their findings in the scientific journal Fish and Fisheries. Imports fell about 37% and exports about 43% over the first nine months of the year compared to 2019. Some of the slump has been tempered by a shift to more people cooking at home, but the industry continues to struggle. The federal government allocated $300 million in CARES Act funds to the seafood industry in May.