DOC’s latest report shows modest retail gains
In April, overall retail sales followed the expected trends, but furniture and home furnishings sales continued to decline, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s latest estimates.
Specifically
Specifically, furniture and home furnishings sales amounted to $11.398 billion in April, showing a 6.4% decrease compared to April 2022’s $12.040 billion and a 0.7% decrease from March’s $11.477 billion.
Year-to-date
Year-to-date, furniture and home furnishings sales have reached $44.570 billion, reflecting a 1.6% decline compared to the first four months of 2022. This decline has persisted following a strong performance in January.
On the other hand
On the other hand, retail sales as a whole saw an increase in April, reaching $686.052 billion, which is a 1.6% rise compared to April 2022’s $679.473 billion and a 0.4% increase compared to March’s $683.179 billion.
Year-over-year changes
When analyzing year-over-year changes, only gas stations (down 14.6%) and electronics and appliance stores (down 7.3%) experienced larger declines than furniture and home furnishings. Compared to March, sporting goods, hobby, musical instrument, and bookstores (down 3.3%) and gas stations (0.8%) performed worse than furniture and home furnishings.
Monthly gains
In terms of monthly gains, miscellaneous store retailers saw a 2.4% increase, and non-store retailers experienced a 1.2% increase in April.