(FORTUNE Magazine) – Many retailers, including debt-laden Macy's and the Bloomingdale's chain of Federated, launched their traditional January sales well before Christmas. But deep discounts -- some reaching 50% and more -- and a burst of buying on December 24 didn't clear the racks. Macy's is now shoving seasonal merchandise out the door at prices knocked down an additional 10%. Chicago's Marshall Field's and Seattle's Nordstrom are both offering discounts of 50%; San Francisco's Emporium, up to 40%. Even without such markdowns, the U.S. was already the world's bargain basement for foreigners who trek here from Europe, South America, and Japan. Fortified by a weak dollar, tourists arrive with shopping lists and go home with bulging suitcases. Says Lisa Skoglund, a teacher visiting New York City from Stockholm: ''A few things, like movies, cost the same here as in Sweden. But nothing is more expensive.'' Among the less expensive things she bought: sweaters, ski clothes, and a bottle of Calvin Klein perfume. Chiemi Suzuki and Naoko Fujita, flight attendants from Tokyo, shopped New York City hard, with places like Bloomingdale's, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, and Henri Bendel circled on their map. ''Typical'' American clothes like Levi's, Nikes, and Timberland boots are always best-sellers. But lately so are Japanese stereos and video cameras, which an Argentinian shopper said cost roughly a third what they would in Argentina. European skis, shoes, and designer outfits are snapped up as well. Brigitte Hohman, an artist's assistant from Paris, says Chanel dresses are 30% cheaper here. She comes to the U.S. four times a year to shop and doesn't shun less-than-elegant chains like Bolton's, where she finds the deals eye-popping. At a time when Americans are just looking, such buying helps some retailers stay afloat. Says Scott Sprague, a salesman at Scandinavian Ski Shop, a New York City sporting goods store: ''I'd say 75% of our customers are foreigners -- Brazilians, Argentineans, Japanese, and Italians. Last summer they were what was keeping this store open.''

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