Apparel Sales Were The Second Best Store Category in September
Consumers were still spending at retail in September, giving a boost to apparel sales.
Overall U.S. retail sales for September rose 0.4 percent to $714.36 billion from $711.29 billion in August, and were up 1.7 percent from year-ago levels. Estimates were adjusted for seasonal variations and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes. Retail trade sales rose 0.3 percent from August 2024, and were up 1.4 percent from year-ago levels.
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Excluding sales at auto dealers and gas stations, economists at Wells Fargo said retailers notched a “solid 0.7 percent increase, more than double the 0.3 percent gain that had been expected.”
Sales at apparel and accessories stores rose 1.5 percent to $26.47 billion from $26.08 billion in August. At department stores, sales inched up nearly 0.4 percent to $10.88 billion from $10.84 billion. Nonstore retailers also saw sales rise 0.4 percent to $124.55 billion from $124 billion. September’s data point for fashion specialty stores were better than August, which saw apparel sales slip for the month, and even July, when sales for the channel were essentially flat.
Sales at apparel and accessories stores was among the largest store category increases for the month, coming in at second place after miscellaneous store retailers that saw a 4 percent increase.
For now, consumers seem to have the wherewithal to spend. Whether that continues for October sales won’t be known until November 15, the date of the next retail sales report from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The early data for October saw first-timer filers for unemployment benefits for the week ended Oct. 12 fall by 19,000 to a seasonally adjusted 241,000, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Claims rose in the prior week because of the effect of Hurricane Helene, and it is expected that claims could rise in the near-term due to Hurricane Milton.
An economic research note from Goldman Sachs noted that the decline of 19,000 was below consensus expectations, given last week’s hurricane spike. The report noted that nationwide continuing claims—the number who receive benefits through statewide standard programs—rose by 9,000 to nearly 1.9 million for the week ended Oct. 5.
It’s probably still too early to tell how the holiday selling season will shape up. Deloitte has forecasted that holiday retail sales will grow between 2.3 percent to 3.3 percent, a range that the research and consulting firm said is more in line with trends over the past decade. The National Retail Federation, a retail trade group, expects holiday spending to grow between 2.5 percent and 3.5 percent over 2023, or a total of between $979.5 billion and $989 billion in November and December, versus 2023’s $955.6 billion spend. Customer Growth Partners (CGP) is forecasting a “slower spending pace than the ten-year 5.2 percent average growth rate,” or a sluggish 4.0 percent rise for Holiday 2024 to $963 billion.