U.S. Retail Sales Unexpectedly Show Steep Drop In December
February 14 2019 - 4:28AM
RTTF2
Retail sales in the U.S. unexpectedly showed a significant
decrease in the month of December, according to government
shutdown-delayed data released by the Commerce Department on
Thursday.
The Commerce Department said retail sales tumbled by 1.2 percent
in December after inching up by a revised 0.1 percent in
November.
Economists had expected retail sales to rise by 0.2 percent,
matching the uptick originally reported for the previous month.
The unexpected slump in retail sales came despite a notable
increase in sales by motor vehicles and parts dealers, which surged
up by 1.0 percent in December after climbing by 0.7 percent in
November.
Excluding the jump in auto sales, retail sales plunged by an
even steeper 1.8 percent in December after coming in unchanged in
November. Ex-auto sales had been expected to edge up by 0.1
percent.
Sales by gas stations helped lead the way lower amid a drop in
gasoline prices, plummeting by 5.1 percent in December following a
4.4 percent nosedive in November.
Underlying sales figures were also troubling, however, as
closely watched core retail sales, which exclude autos, gasoline,
building materials and food services, tumbled by 1.7 percent in
December after an upwardly revised 1.0 percent jump in
November.
Sales by sporting good, hobby, music and book stores,
miscellaneous store retailers, non-store retailers, and department
stores all showed substantial decreases during the month.
"It's possible the monthly swings are due to seasonal adjustment
problems, but there is no hiding that there was a definite tailing
off of momentum at the end of 2018," said Michael Pearce, Senior
U.S. Economist at Capital Economics.
The Commerce Department said the annual rate of retail sales
growth slowed dramatically to 2.3 percent in December from 4.1
percent in November.
The annual rate of ex-auto sales growth also slowed to 2.0
percent in December from 4.7 percent in the previous month.
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