July retail sales data from Commerce and NRF show gains

United States retail sales in July showed gains, with another month of improving sales, following the economic depths of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to data issued today by the United States Department of Commerce and the National Retail Federation (NRF).

Commerce reported that July retail sales—at $536 billion—were up 1.2% compared to June and were up 2.7% annually. And total retail sales, from May through July, were down 0.2% annually.

Retail trade sales headed up 0.8% annually, said Commerce, and non-store retailers, which includes e-commerce, continued to surge, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, rising 24.7% annually, with food and beverage sales up 11.1%.

NRF’s July data, which excludes automobile dealers, gas stations, and restaurants in order to focus on core retail sales, pointed to a 1% seasonally adjusted gain over June and a 10% unadjusted annual increase.

And on a three-month moving average through July, NRF said that retail sales were up 7.1% annually on an unadjusted basis and are up 4.7% through July on a year-to-date basis.

“Retail sales are starting the third quarter on a solid footing considering the nosedive we saw this spring, but we have to remember that there’s uncertainty about economic policy and that the resurgence of the virus is putting pressure on the fledgling recovery,” NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said in a statement. “While households are spending, they are anxious about their health and economic well-being, so they are being pragmatic. The amount of uncertainty about forecasting is huge as we look toward the second half of the year, and what happens with the economy comes down to what the coronavirus allows us to do.”

Specifics from key retail sectors during July cited by the NRF include:

• Electronics and appliance stores were up 22.9 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted but down 2.3 percent unadjusted year-over-year; 
• Clothing and clothing accessory stores were up 5.7 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted but down 19.6 percent unadjusted year-over-year;
• Health and personal care stores were up 3.6 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted and up 3.1 percent unadjusted year-over-year:
• Online and other non-store sales were up 0.7 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted and up 25.8 percent unadjusted year-over-year;
• Grocery and beverage stores were up 0.2 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted and up 12.8 percent unadjusted year-over-year;
• Furniture and home furnishings stores were unchanged percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted but up 0.5 percent unadjusted year-over-year;
• General merchandise stores were down 0.2 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted but up 3.1 percent unadjusted year-over-year;
• Building materials and garden supply stores were down 2.9 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted but up 16 percent unadjusted year-over-year; and
• Sporting goods stores were down 5 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted but up 18.9 percent unadjusted year-over-year