U.S. retail sales showed moderate growth in June amid a still-solid economy and near-zero inflation for goods, the latest CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor concludes.
Total retail sales, excluding automobiles and gasoline, were up 0.47% seasonally adjusted month over month and up 3.42% unadjusted year over year in June, according to the Retail Monitor. That compared with increases of 1.35% month over month and 3.03% year over year in May.
“Consumers are being thoughtful about their spending, prioritizing non-discretionary purchases as they continue to face high interest rates and lingering inflation,” said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “Inflation has dropped to nearly zero for goods, but remains persistent with services, and solid economic fundamentals are helping consumers make ends meet. Month-over-month sales growth was moderate in June, and year-over-year gains for total retail sales were the largest we’ve seen since last fall.”
- Online and other non-store sales were up 1.78% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 23.08% year over year unadjusted.
- General merchandise stores were up 0.61% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 5.79% year over year unadjusted.
- Clothing and accessories stores were down 0.11% month over month seasonally adjusted but up 5.35% year over year unadjusted.
- Health and personal care stores were down 0.04% month over month seasonally adjusted but up 4.63% year over year unadjusted.
- Grocery and beverage stores were up 1.01% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 4.31% year over year unadjusted.
- Sporting goods, hobby, music and book stores were up 0.68% month over month seasonally adjusted but down 0.52% year over year unadjusted.
- Electronics and appliance stores were down 1.02% month over month seasonally adjusted and down 3.24% year over year unadjusted.
- Furniture and home furnishings stores were down 0.62% month over month seasonally adjusted and down 3.26% year over year unadjusted.
- Building and garden supply stores were down 1.8% month over month seasonally adjusted and down 3.46% year over year unadjusted.
The CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor provides a first look at how retail sales perform each month. The monitor leverages Affinity Solutions’ data from more than 140 million credit and debit cards, with nearly 9 billion transactions totaling more than $500 billion in annual spending, to measure the monthly and annual change in U.S. retail sales.
Click here for more from the survey.