Core Retail Sales Decline

Following all the glowing retail sales reports for Christmas, the actual numbers reported today show a mere .1% rise. Excluding autos which rose 1.5%, retail sales actually declined.

MarketWatch reports U.S. retail sales rise scant 0.1% in December

Sales at U.S. retailers increased 0.1% in December, the government said Thursday, in a report that bucked expectations of stronger sales during the holiday period.

“Apparently, all those reports of a robust holiday shopping season were made by people too much into the holiday spirits as retail sales did not surge in December,” said Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisors, Inc.

Electronics were touted as one of the strongest sectors for holiday shopping. But the Commerce Department’s data showed a 3.9% monthly decline at electronic stores.

Sales at online retailers, another supposed holiday hotspot, fell 0.4%.

Sales at the nation’s malls were lower in December. Sales at general merchandise stores fell 0.8%, including a 0.2% decrease at department stores.

Excluding a 1.5% rise in motor vehicles sales, retail sales for the month fell 0.2% — much weaker than the 0.3% gain expected.

Sales at gasoline stores fell 1.6% in December. Excluding autos and gasoline, sales were flat on the month.

So-called “core” sales, which exclude autos, gasoline, and building materials, fell 0.2% in December. This was the one and only drop in core sales seen during 2011.

• Retail Sales +.1%
• Core Retail Sales -.2%
• Gasoline Store Sales -1.6%
• Electronics -3.9%
• General Merchandise -.8%
• Autos +1.5%
• Furniture +1.0%
• Building Materials and Hardware +1.6%
• Leisure, Sports, Hobbies, Reading -.4%
• Health and Personal Care +.6%
• Food and Beverage -.2%
• Restaurants and Bars +.7%
• Non-store outlets and online stores -.4%

The Retail Sales Report released this morning shows that retail sales in December were up 0.1% month-over-month (but t