CALIFORNIA BUSINESS MINUTE
Retail Sales
07-30-08
Hi, I am Tim Johnson and welcome to the California Business Minute.
The national retail and food sales figures for June were released by the U.S. Department of
Commerce. The numbers showed a 0.1 percent increase over the month and a 3.0 percent
increase from June 2007.
The total retail sales for June 2008 were $384.2 billion versus $376.2 billion in
June 2007.
The latest retail sales survey revealed a variety of information. For example, excluding auto
sales, retail sales numbers were positive, illustrating that the American consumer is still
resilient. Government analysts believe that the consumer is still spending even in the midst
of rising gas prices.
Continued sales reductions were seen in auto sales (-3.3), furniture and home furnishings
(-1.4) along with building material supplies (-0.9) over the month. On the flip side, there were
few increases of any significance.
In the meantime, the Stimulus Checks have been mailed in hopes of increasing retail sales.
But many economists believe that due to the lag in reporting, the impact will not be felt until
the third quarter of this year. Stay tune.
I am Tim Johnson and this has been the California Business Minute.
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