The US Census Bureau has just published its figures for the retail sales in July. The Census Bureau found that retail sales for July grew about 0.4 percent from June and had grown 5.5 percent since June of 2009. The increase was less than estimated. This, along with other economic data would indicate that restoration is going to be a slow process. The consumer price index has also inched higher. Consumer prices are being watched closely by economists, as numerous fear deflation due to rising costs of goods and lower employment could be on the horizon.
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Retail sales for July saw a slight increase. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that retail sales as a whole increased by 0.4 percent for July, but that figure could be somewhat misleading. Discretionary spending, or goods like electronics, jewelry, or electronics actually fell by 0.42 percent. Discretionary spending is up 2.77 percent from a year ago, according to the Christian Science Monitor. Retail sales had fallen the previous two months, as May retail sales were down 0.3 percent from April, and June sales slid a further 1.0 percent, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Auto sales make up most of the gains
The gains in the retail sales were helped along by automobile sales, confirmed by the profits that Ford and General Motors realized for this last quarter. According to Bloomberg, the bulk of the increase was from individuals buying automobiles and, subsequently, gas. All other purchases combined for a drop of 0.1 percent. There was also a rise in consumer prices. The Consumer Price Index saw an increase of 0.3 percent, while not large is still prices going up in a time of higher unemployment.
Deflation is being viewed
The unemployment rate is still almost 10 percent, and recovery is progressing slowly. The Federal Reserve is presently looking for signs of deflation, which is where prices of goods increases while less cash is available to go around. Less wealth is held in housing, and fewer people are employed fully. The indicators seem to point to cautious consumers, as less spending and more saving appear to be the orders of the day.
Additional information at these websites
CS Monitor
csmonitor.com/Money/Paper-Economy/2010/0813/Retail-sales-up-in-July
Wall Street Journal
blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2010/08/13/price-retail-sales-data-arrive-in-line-with-expectations/
Bloomberg
bloomberg.com/news/2010-08-13/retail-sales-in-u-s-increased-0-4-in-july-less-than-economists-forecast.html
