Credit, Economy and Financial News from TruckingFactor.com

Retail Sales Stabilizing

The Commerce Department said total retail sales slipped 0.1% in February, following an upwardly revised 1.8% gain in January. Following steep declines of 3.1% in December, 2.4% in November and 3.4% in October, sales in the latest two months suggest that things have stabilized, although analysts do not expect a major rebound in consumer spending in the near term due to the recession. As a reminder of how far sales have fallen, February 2008 sales trailed February 2007 sales by 8.6%. Excluding auto sales, which fell 4.2%, retail sales actually grew 0.7% in February. Gasoline sales climbed 3.4%, apparel retailers posted a 2.8% gain, general merchandise sales climbed 1.3%, department store sales grew 1.1%, furniture sales rose 0.7% and sales at electronics and appliance chains grew 1.2%. Sales of building materials dipped 0.2% in February.

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Date Last Updated: 03/18/2009