Mr. Toombs said that the rents were the same as in other regional malls selling high-priced goods in the Princeton area.

But economic growth in the United States last year, and the resulting demand for imports, superseded any dampening effect that high-priced goods may have had on consumers.

The question, the analysts said, was whether the weakness was only temporary or a signal of a longer-term decline in demand for high-priced durable goods.

In a recent poll by The New York Times, fully 81 percent of Americans said they had felt social pressure to buy high-priced goods.

A small cafe, clothing shops and furriers selling high-priced goods have opened nearby.

The dealers of many high-priced goods did report an initial period of buyer uncertainty im-mediately after the crash.

Retailers oriented toward mass merchandising are aware of this and do not want high-priced goods in their stores.

Some e-commerce executives say they believe sites are often too shy about selling high-priced goods.

I was thrown down on a thick Turkey carpet, the fancified rich floor covering one saw in a palace, a display rug for high-priced goods.

Moreover, its inefficient monopolies reaped fat profits at the expense of Indian consumers, who were forced to buy shoddy, high-priced goods.