WASHINGTON–Department stores, home furnishings retailers, and stores specializing in appliances and consumer electronics all saw their seasonally adjusted sales drop in January, according to data released this morning by the U.S. Commerce Department.
Although retail sales in general, at $344.6 billion, inched up over the month, only non-store retailers, among those tracked by HFN, showed an increase. Home furnishings stores saw sales drop 0.5 percent to $10 billion, compared with December. On a year-over-year basis, the home goods retailers dropped 4.3 percent.
Likewise, stores specializing in appliances and electronics dipped 1 percent since December, and 1.6 percent since January 2007.
Department stores, excluding leased space, were down 1.1 percent over the month and 4.8 percent over the year.
In contrast, non-store retailers such as Internet sites and home shopping television shows, grew a half point since December, and a strong 10.6 percent since January 2007.
