NASA scientists recently announced the earth’s surface temperature is slowly rising — and now it seems that phenomena is affecting the prices you’ll pay for winter clothes and gear.

Retailers report sales for winter apparel and normal necessities like shovels and de-icing salts are down across the board, leaving them with shelves full of cold-weather merchandise they’ll need to clear out to make way for spring and summer items — which means deep discounts are probably on the horizon.

The Associated Press says coats are “the biggest headaches” for retailers, adding, “They take up a lot of space, and they are expensive, so big markdowns hurt the bottom line more. Stores are discounting coats by 70 percent on average, and many are slashing prices on entire coat departments.”

Tim Spangler, an executive at outdoor apparel store REI, recently told The New York Times that the retailer plans “promotions, markdowns, moving inventory around to other parts of the country where it’s selling quicker” to unload unsold items.

In the weeks to come, expect retailers to offer larger and earlier-than-average markdowns on coats, boots, and the like — and if you can wait until spring to stock up, you’ll see even better deals.

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