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Year-over-year retail sales (minus motor vehicles and gasoline) rose by 4.2 percent in July on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Nonstore retail (a category that comprises all online sales, including those processed by physical retailers, plus mail-order companies) rose by 16 percent from the comparable month a year ago. Health and personal-care retailers maintained their long sales streak, going up by 4.3 percent. Restaurants and drinking establishments were up by 3.8 percent, while food-and-beverage stores saw a 3.4 percent increase.
Other categories fared less well. Though general-merchandise stores rose by 2.1 percent, sales at traditional and discount department stores (a subset of the general-merchandise category) fell by 4.7 percent from their year-ago level. Electronics sales dropped by 3.5 percent, building-supply stores shrank by 2.9 percent, and apparel stores fell back by 2.4 percent.
By Edmund Mander
Director, Editor-In-Chief/SCT
