Global| Jun 11 2010U.S. Retail Spending Disappoints Across-the-Board
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
U.S. consumers took a break during May from their shopping spree after the recession's end. Retail sales declined 1.2% last month following an upwardly revised 0.6% April rise. The drop disappointed Consensus expectations for a 0.2% [...]
U.S. consumers took a break
during May from their shopping spree after the recession's end. Retail
sales declined 1.2% last month following an upwardly revised 0.6% April
rise. The drop disappointed Consensus expectations for a 0.2% increase.
Nevertheless, sales have risen 5.7% since the recession's end last June.
Despite last month's already reported increase in unit sales, retail purchases of motor vehicles fell 1.7% during May. The y/y gain of 12.6%, however, is close to the gain in unit purchases. Finally, sales at gasoline service stations fell 3.3% (+20.2% y/y). It was further evidence that higher prices are discouraging gas usage since prices fell just 0.4% m/m.
Nonauto sales declined 1.1% after the 0.6% April increase which was revised up slightly. The decline also disappointed Consensus expectations for a 0.1% uptick. The shortfall was paced by a 9.3% drop (+3.1% y/y) in sales at building materials and hardware stores.
Also disappointing was "core" discretionary spending. Apparel store sales declined 1.3% (+4.1% y/y) after a 0.7% April decline. General merchandise store sales also fell by 1.1% following a 0.2% slip during April. Working the other way, sales of furniture, home furnishings & electronics rose 0.8% (5.2% y/y) and recovered most of the April decline. Furniture sales alone rose 1.0% (5.3% y/y) while a 0.6% increase (5.0% y/y) in sales of electronics & appliances recovered all of the April drop. Sales by internet & catalogue vendors ticked up 0.2% (15.2% y/y) but April sales were revised sharply higher and rose 2.5%. Food service sales ticked
The retail sales data are available in Haver's USECON database.
The latest Beige Book covering regional economic conditions from the Federal Reserve Board can be found here .
| May | April | March | May y/y | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Retail Sales & Food Services (%) | -1.2 | 0.6 | 2.1 | 6.8 | -6.3 | -1.0 | 3.3 |
| Excluding Autos | -1.1 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 6.1 | -5.1 | 2.3 | 3.9 |
| Non-Auto Less Gasoline | -0.8 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 4.4 | -1.9 | 1.2 | 3.5 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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