Retail Sales Figures

New York will ban the sale of dogs, cats and rabbits in pet stores, joining other states that restrict animal sales as part of a push by animal-welfare organizations to shut down large breeders in the Midwest. The ban will take effect in 2024, according to Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat who signed the legislation Thursday. “Dogs, cats and rabbits across New York deserve loving homes and humane treatment,” she said. Democrats have majorities in the state Legislature but the bill passed with bipartisan…

U.S. retail sales fell sharply in November as the holiday shopping season got under way, posting their biggest drop in nearly a year as inflation cooled. Sales at U.S. retail stores, online sellers, and restaurants fell by a seasonally-adjusted 0.6% in November from the previous month, the Commerce Department said Thursday. That was a slowdown from October’s robust 1.3% sales increase. U.S. retail sales fell sharply in November as the holiday shopping season got under way, posting their…

More shoppers flocked to stores over the Thanksgiving weekend compared with last year, a sign that many consumers are returning to their prepandemic shopping behavior.Roughly 197 million Americans visited stores or shopped online in the period between Thanksgiving Day and Cyber Monday, according to an estimate released Tuesday by the National Retail Federation.…

A report on October retail spending will show how American shoppers responded to continued high inflation ahead of the holiday season.The Commerce Department is scheduled to release October retail sales figures at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time Wednesday. Newsletter Sign-up The 10-Point. A…

HONG KONG—China’s economy sank into a deeper funk last month as the weight of strict zero-Covid measures, a real-estate downturn and sinking export demand underscored the difficulties of rekindling growth amid tighter government regulations and a worsening global economy. New data released Tuesday showed economic activity cooling across the board in October. Retail sales contracted unexpectedly for the first time in five months as factory output growth slowed and a pullback in real-estate investment accelerated. The fresh…

Consumers’ retail spending shifted in September as they adjusted to changing costs amid strong inflation and rising interest rates.They spent more on increasingly expensive essentials such as food and less on items with falling prices like gasoline and furniture, according to two government data reports this week. Overall U.S. retail sales—which comprise consumer spending mostly on goods such as furniture, vehicles and groceries but also at restaurants—were unchanged last month from August, after a revised 0.4% gain in…

The Commerce Department is scheduled to release its September retail sales data at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time Friday. Retail sales—which comprise consumer spending mostly on goods like furniture, vehicles and groceries but also food services—have fluctuated but generally risen in recent months amid higher prices and rising interest rates that can make big purchases more expensive.…

HONG KONG—China’s economy showed modest signs of improvement in August as stimulus measures kicked in, though renewed Covid-19 curbs and a worsening property downturn continue to damp the outlook for the world’s second-largest economy.A raft of data released Friday by Beijing offered a mixed picture: Infrastructure investment picked up more quickly than expected, but consumer spending remained weak and property prices accelerated their declines. Chinese fixed-asset investment in the first eight months of 2022 was up 5.8%…

U.S. consumers spent at a steady pace in August as gasoline prices fell, with purchases of vehicles and back-to-school items like clothing driving the gain. Retail sales, a measure of spending at stores, online and in restaurants, rose 0.3% in August from the prior month, the Commerce Department said Thursday. July spending was revised down to a 0.4% decline from a previous flat reading. Much of August’s gain was due to higher spending on vehicles, with…

Macy’s Inc. M 5.70% became the latest retailer to lower its financial guidance for the year, citing risks of a steeper economic downturn and slowdown in consumer spending. The New York department-store chain on Tuesday said cutting its sales and earnings forecast also takes into account the markdowns and promotions the company thinks will be needed to get rid of old inventory. The revision comes despite the company posting…