U.S. retail sales dip on lower auto sales (largest decline in 5 mos.)

ECONOMIC REPORT

U.S. retail sales dip on lower auto sales

By Rex Nutting, MarketWatch
Last Update: 8:31 AM ET Feb. 15, 2005


WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. retail sales dropped 0.3 percent in January as auto sales slowed sharply, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.


Excluding the 3.3 percent drop in auto sales, retail sales increased 0.6 percent.

Economists were looking for a 0.4 percent decline in overall sales and a 0.5 percent gain in sales excluding autos, according to a canvass conducted by MarketWatch.

It was the largest decline in retail sales in five months.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B70FD685B%2DB3E3%2D44AD%2D97AA%2DE8C89376B6EB%7D&siteid=mktw


The tax cuts and last week's low unemployment figure are really paying dividends.

Welcome to the "bush illusion of economic prosperity"

The place was a ghost town and there were a huge number of stores closed up. I was shocked since this is one of the biggest and most popular malls in my area. It used to be that they had a huge waiting list for stores to get in this mall. I think we are starting to see a drying up of the consumer dollar.

than they're admitting.

Read the Reuters report at the very end for the revised December numbers.

The Commerce Department revised December's retail sales total slightly lower, to a 1.1 percent gain from the originally reported 1.2 percent advance, but the number excluding autos was unrevised at a 0.3 percent advance.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsChannel.aspx?type=businessNews

It's under the retail story at the side.

this was bound to happen. People can't spend what they don't have. Look for job growth to slow even more as retail jobs start to dry up.

Folks, as I, and many others on this board have said, we are heading towards a major economic collapse next year. You must pay off your debts this year if you want to survive.

Most of my neighbors eat out at least three times a week, and put it on their credit cards. Plus, they purchase their lunch every day, and place it on credit cards. It's like chewing on money and having it come out of the rear three hours later...better stated: burning money.
They also use one credit card to pay another. It's like Russian roulette. There's no way for them to stop the roller-coaster ride.

They find it strange that we only eat out once a month. They are horrified to know that we cook our meals every evening, breakfast and lunch too. And that we don't have maid service, pool service, gardening service, and we never call out for pizza. Our house is fully paid for, and we pay our credit cards fully, each month. We laugh all the way to the bank.

I thought I read that people cut back on credit card debt (ie, they bought less with their credit cards) at the steepest rate of decline in a long time.

That surprised me. But if retail sales are dropping, it makes a little sense.