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- Japan: Monetary Survey (Jun)
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Economy in Brief
U.S. Unemployment Claims Continue on an Uptrend
Initial claims for unemployment insurance filed in the week ended August 6 rose 14,000 to 262,000...
RICS Survey Points to More U.K. Housing Sector Weakness
The survey of housing market conditions in the U.K. continues to show strength in prices versus weakness...
U.S. CPI Unchanged in July with Drop in Energy Prices
Consumer prices were unchanged in July after an outsized 1.3% m/m jump in June...
U.S. Federal Government Budget Deficit Shrinks in July
The U.S. Treasury Department reported a federal budget deficit of $211.1 billion in July...
U.S. Mortgage Applications Rose Slightly in the Latest Week
Mortgage applications increased 0.2% (-62.9% y/y) from one week earlier...
Viewpoints
Commentaries are the opinions of the author and do not reflect the views of Haver Analytics.
by Tom Moeller January 12, 2007
US retail sales in December rose 0.9% though the sales gain during the prior month was lowered to 0.6% from 1.0% reported initially. The latest increase again easily beat Consensus expectations for a 0.6% rise.
Excluding autos, retail sales jumped a larger 1.0% last month, though the November gain was lowered to a still firm 0.7% from 1.1%. Sales by motor vehicle & parts dealers rose 0.3% (3.6% y/y) after a downwardly revised slight decline in November, as new unit vehicle sales did rise 4.4% in December.
Sales at gasoline service stations jumped 3.8% reflecting the 3.7% recovery in gasoline prices to $2.31 per gallon.
Nonauto retail sales less gasoline in November jumped 0.7% (6.2% y/y) though the November gain was revised lower to 0.5% from 0.9% reported initially. During the fourth quarter these sales rose at a 3.7% annual rate, the versus 4.2% during 3Q.
Sales of discretionary items were generally firm last month. Sales at furniture, home furnishings & appliance stores jumped 1.8% (11.1% y/y) after an upwardly revised 2.8% November spike. Sales at electronics & appliance stores surged 3.0% (15.0% y/y) after a 5.8% November surge. Apparel store sales gained 0.6% (5.5% y/y) after two months of decline and general merchandise store sales rose 0.9% (5.4% y/y).
Building material sales fell 1.1% (-0.8% y/y), the eighth decline in the last nine months. Sales of nonstore retailers (internet & catalogue) rose a modest 0.3% (7.9% y/y) but restaurant and bar sales jumped 2.3% (9.3% y/y).
December | November | Y/Y | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Retail Sales & Food Services | 0.9% | 0.6% | 5.4% | 6.3% | 7.2% | 6.2% |
Excluding Autos | 1.0% | 0.7% | 5.8% | 7.5% | 8.3% | 7.2% |