Auto Sector Is Blamed for 0.9% Retail Sales Dip

Retail sales fell a moderate 0.9% last month, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, with a sharp drop in auto sales largely responsible for the decline.

Some economists said the better-than-expected figures pointed to an end of the consumer’s unwillingness to spend.

But others pointed to a sharply lower revision of the December figures as evidence that the end is not in sight.

December’s drop was revised to a 1.5% fall. It originally was estimated as a 0.4% decline but was adjusted downward largely on the basis of lower auto sales.

Falling demand for new cars and cheaper gasoline were the major culprits behind the slumping sales in January and December, the department reported.

The Commerce Department said retail sales totaled a seasonally adjusted $148.2 billion, down from $149.5 billion in December when sales dropped 1.5%--even worse than the 0.4% first reported last month.

At the same time, January sales were down 1.4% from those of the same month of 1990, the first year-over-year decline in 29 1/2 years.

It was the first back-to-back monthly decline in seven months.

Retail Sales Seasonally adjusted, billions of dollars Jan.,’91: $148.2 Dec., ‘90: $149.5 Jan., ‘90: $150.3 Source: Commmerce Department