Recent Updates
- Japan: Loans and Discounts Outstanding (Jan)
- Korea: Regional CPI (Feb)
- Korea: GDP (Q4), CPI (Feb)
- New Zealand: Tax Revenue and Receipts (Jan)
- more updates...
Economy in Brief
U.S. ISM Services Index Weakens in February
The ISM Composite Index of Services Activity declined to 55.3 during February...
U.S. Mortgage Applications Edge Up
The MBA Mortgage Loan Applications Index edged up 0.5% w/w (5.4% y/y) in the week ended February 26...
Global PMIs Show Ongoing Struggle with Growth Global PMIs Show Ongoing Struggle with Growth
While manufacturing climbs higher, the services sector remains stuck...
U.S. Light Vehicle Sales Weaken in February
Sales of light vehicles declined 5.6% during February (-6.7% y/y) to 15.88 million units...
U.S. Gasoline & Crude Oil Prices Continue to Strengthen
The price of regular gasoline strengthened to $2.71 per gallon (11.9% y/y) in the week ended March 1...
Viewpoints
Commentaries are the opinions of the author and do not reflect the views of Haver Analytics.
by Tom Moeller January 16, 2020
Total retail sales including food service establishments increased 0.3% (5.8% y/y) during December following a 0.3% November gain, revised from 0.2%. The increase matched expectations in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. Retail sales excluding motor vehicles & parts rebounded 0.7% (6.3% y/y) last month after little change in November. Expectations had been for a 0.5% improvement.
Retail sales alone rose 0.4% (6.0% y/y) in December for the third straight month. A 1.3% decline (+4.1% y/y) in motor vehicles purchases held back the rise in total retail sales. The decline compared to a 1.9% drop in unit vehicle sales. Offsetting this decline was a 1.6% gain (0.1% y/y) in apparel sales and a 0.6% rise (2.2% y/y) in general merchandise store sales. Electronics & appliance store sales also rose 0.6% (-0.7% y/y) and furniture & home furnishings store sales edged 0.1% higher (3.2% y/y). Sales of nonstore retailers rose 0.2% (19.2% y/y) and sporting goods & hobby shop store sales gained 0.9% (1.8% y/y).
Gasoline & service station sales increased 2.8% (11.3% y/y) as seasonally adjusted gasoline prices rose.
In the nondiscretionary sales categories, food & grocery store sales gained 0.4% (3.7% y/y) for a second month. Sales of health & personal care product stores also rose 0.4% (+3.8% y/y).
Restaurant sales increased 0.2% (4.9% y/y) following a 0.6% decline.
The retail sales data can be found in Haver's USECON database. The Action Economics forecast is in the AS1REPNA database.
Retail Spending (% chg) | Dec | Nov | Oct | Dec Y/Y | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total Retail Sales & Food Services | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 5.8 | 3.6 | 4.8 | 4.2 |
Excluding Autos | 0.7 | -0.0 | 0.2 | 6.3 | 3.4 | 5.5 | 5.0 |
Retail Sales | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 6.0 | 3.5 | 4.6 | 4.5 |
Retail Less Autos | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 6.5 | 3.3 | 5.3 | 4.8 |
Motor Vehicle & Parts | -1.3 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 2.3 | 3.4 |
Gasoline Service Stations | 2.8 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 11.3 | 0.5 | 12.6 | 8.9 |
Food Service & Drinking Places Sales | 0.2 | -0.6 | -0.1 | 4.9 | 4.3 | 6.3 | 5.9 |