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ADVANCE MONTHLY SALES FOR RETAIL AND FOOD SERVICES SUMMARY - March 2012
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Notice of Revision: Monthly retail sales were revised on April 30, 2012 based on the results of the 2010 Annual Retail Trade Survey. This report no longer contains the most up to date estimates. The Annual Revision of Monthly Retail and Food Services showing revised estimates can be found on our website at http://www.census.gov/retail/mrts/www/benchmark/2012/html/annrev12.html.
The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for March, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $411.1 billion, an increase of 0.8 percent (±0.5%) from the previous month and 6.5 percent (±0.7%) above March 2011. Total sales for the January through March 2012 period were up 6.4 percent (±0.5%) from the same period a year ago. The January to February 2012 percent change was revised from 1.1 percent (±0.5) to 1.0 percent (±0.2%).
Retail trade sales were up 0.8 percent (±0.5%) from February 2012 and 6.5 percent (±0.7%) above last year. Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers sales were up 14.1 percent (±2.6%) from March 2011 and nonstore retailers were up 9.3 percent (±3.0%) from last year.
The advance estimates are based on a subsample of the Census Bureau’s full retail and food services sample. A stratified random sampling method is used to select approximately 5,000 retail and food services firms whose sales are then weighted and benchmarked to represent the complete universe of over three million retail and food services firms. Responding firms account for approximately 65% of the MARTS dollar volume estimate. For an explanation of the measures of sampling variability included in this report, please see the Reliability of Estimates section on the last page of this publication.
* The 90 percent confidence interval includes zero. The Census Bureau does not have sufficient statistical evidence to conclude that the actual change is different than zero.
The Advance Monthly Sales for Retail and Food Services for April is scheduled to be released May 15, 2012 at 8:30 a.m. EDT.
TABLE 1A. ESTIMATED MONTHLY SALES FOR RETAIL AND FOOD SERVICES, BY KIND OF BUSINESS--March 2012
Estimates adjusted for seasonal variations and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes.
(Total sales estimates are shown in millions of dollars and are based on data from the Advance Monthly Retail Trade Survey, Monthly Retail Trade Survey, and administrative records.)(2)
(In Millions of dollars)
2012 2012 2012 2011 2011
NAICS(1) Kind of Business Mar(3) Feb Jan Mar Feb
Code (a) (p) (r) (r) (r)
Retail & food services, total.................... 411,069 407,872 403,828 386,149 383,197
Total (excl. motor vehicle & parts)............ 338,104 335,536 332,423 318,752 315,308
Retail ....................................... 367,771 364,697 360,878 345,424 343,017
GAFO(4).......................................... (*) 100,581 100,131 97,198 96,484
441 Motor vehicle & parts dealers.................... 72,965 72,336 71,405 67,397 67,889
4411,4412 Auto & other motor veh. dealers................. 66,039 65,333 64,374 60,725 61,312
442 Furniture & home furnishings stores.............. 8,014 7,926 8,009 7,517 7,319
443 Electronics & appliance stores.................... 8,312 8,228 8,199 8,575 8,399
44311,13 Appl., T.V. & camera........................... (*) 6,330 6,319 6,692 6,537
44312 Computer & software stores...................... (*) 1,898 1,880 1,883 1,862
444 Building material & garden eq. & supplies dealers 27,758 26,941 26,743 24,334 23,958
4441 Building mat. & supplies dealers................ (*) 21,709 21,497 19,616 19,196
445 Food & beverage stores........................... 52,362 52,135 52,150 50,597 50,550
4451 Grocery stores.................................. 46,784 46,621 46,639 45,400 45,231
4453 Beer, wine & liquor stores...................... (*) 3,761 3,759 3,609 3,673
446 Health & personal care stores.................... 23,189 23,232 23,147 22,887 22,685
44611 Pharmacies & drug stores........................ (*) 19,182 19,231 19,076 19,032
447 Gasoline stations................................ 47,631 47,105 45,449 44,250 42,653
448 Clothing & clothing accessories stores........... 20,093 19,922 19,459 18,618 18,305
44811 Men's clothing stores........................... (*) (S) (S) (S) (S)
44812 Women's clothing stores......................... (*) 3,395 3,349 3,139 3,164
4482 Shoe stores..................................... (*) 2,455 2,338 2,232 2,239
451 Sporting goods, hobby, book & music stores....... 7,773 7,735 7,599 7,375 7,318
452 General merchandise stores....................... 54,026 53,646 53,745 52,116 52,143
4521 Department stores (ex. L.D.).................... 15,509 15,470 15,309 15,396 15,447
4521 Department stores (incl. L.D.)(5)............... (*) (NA) (NA) (NA) (NA)
4529 Other general merchandise stores................ (*) 38,176 38,436 36,720 36,696
45291 Warehouse clubs & supercenters................. (*) 33,143 33,364 32,204 32,170
45299 All other gen. merchandise stores.............. (*) 5,033 5,072 4,516 4,526
453 Miscellaneous store retailers.................... 10,614 10,704 10,609 9,712 9,836
454 Nonstore retailers............................... 35,034 34,787 34,364 32,046 31,962
4541 Electronic shopping & mail-order houses......... (*) 26,680 26,370 24,352 24,239
722 Food services & drinking places.................. 43,298 43,175 42,950 40,725 40,180
(*) Advance estimates are not available for this kind of business.
(NA) Not available (S) Suppressed (a) Advance estimate (p) Preliminary estimate (r) Revised estimate
(1) For a full description of the NAICS codes used in this table, see http://www.census.gov/eos/www/naics
(2) Estimates are concurrently adjusted for seasonal variation and for holiday and trading day differences, but not for price changes. Concurrent seasonal adjustment
uses all available unadjusted estimates as input to the X-12 ARIMA program. The factors derived from the program are used in calculating all seasonally
adjusted estimates shown in this table. Year-to-date seasonally adjusted sales estimates are not tabulated. Adjustment factors and explanatory material can be found
on the Internet at http://www.census.gov/retail
(3) Advance estimates are based on early reports obtained from a small sample of firms selected from the larger Monthly Retail Trade Survey (MRTS) sample.
All other estimates are from the MRTS sample.
(4) GAFO represents firms which specialize in department store types of merchandise and is comprised of furniture & home furnishings (442), electronics & appliances (443),
clothing & clothing accessories(448), sporting goods, hobby, book, and music (451), general merchandise(452), office supply, stationery, and gift stores(4532).
(5) Estimates include data for leased departments operated within department stores. Data for this line are not included in broader kind-of-business totals.
TABLE 1B. ESTIMATED MONTHLY SALES FOR RETAIL AND FOOD SERVICES, BY KIND OF BUSINESS--March 2012
Estimates not adjusted for seasonal variations and holiday and trading-day differences and price changes.
(In Millions of dollars and Annual Percent Change)
3 month total
% Chg. 2012 2012 2012 2011 2011
NAICS(1) Kind of Business 2012 from Mar(2) Feb Jan Mar Feb
Code 2011 (a) (p) (r)
Retail & food services, total.................... 1,166,084 7.9 424,121 379,160 362,803 394,861 343,955
Total (excl. motor vehicle & parts)............ 951,564 7.7 341,971 308,847 300,746 318,879 280,777
Retail ....................................... 1,039,574 7.7 378,572 338,014 322,988 353,036 306,748
GAFO(3).......................................... (*) (*) (*) 92,081 85,553 93,875 85,219
441 Motor vehicle & parts dealers.................... 214,520 8.7 82,150 70,313 62,057 75,982 63,178
4411,4412 Auto & other motor veh. dealers................. 194,596 8.8 74,954 63,765 55,877 68,923 57,265
44111 New car dealers................................ (*) (*) (*) 52,237 46,848 56,083 46,391
4413 Auto parts, acc. & tire stores.................. (*) (*) (*) 6,548 6,180 7,059 5,913
442 Furniture & home furnishings stores.............. 22,960 10.7 8,310 7,466 7,184 7,705 6,638
4421 Furniture stores................................ (*) (*) (*) 4,424 4,027 4,360 3,924
4422 Home furnishings stores......................... (*) (*) (*) 3,042 3,157 3,345 2,714
443 Electronics & appliance stores.................... 23,614 -0.6 8,128 8,008 7,478 8,260 7,887
44311,13 Appl., T.V. & camera........................... (*) (*) (*) 6,222 5,782 6,264 6,191
44312 Computer & software stores...................... (*) (*) (*) 1,786 1,696 1,996 1,696
444 Building material & garden eq. & supplies dealers 67,965 13.7 27,578 20,487 19,900 24,543 17,618
4441 Building mat. & supplies dealers................ (*) (*) (*) 17,259 16,789 19,636 14,723
445 Food & beverage stores........................... 152,354 5.1 52,923 49,259 50,172 50,159 46,008
4451 Grocery stores.................................. 137,622 4.8 47,579 44,383 45,660 45,355 41,477
4453 Beer, wine & liquor stores...................... (*) (*) (*) 3,291 3,086 3,353 3,104
446 Health & personal care stores.................... 69,985 3.3 24,140 22,860 22,985 23,848 21,483
44611 Pharmacies & drug stores........................ (*) (*) (*) 18,779 19,135 19,858 17,966
447 Gasoline stations................................ 131,725 10.3 48,345 42,112 41,268 44,427 36,767
448 Clothing & clothing accessories stores........... 52,538 10.5 20,343 17,871 14,324 18,086 15,799
44811 Men's clothing stores........................... (*) (*) (*) 579 560 646 536
44812 Women's clothing stores......................... (*) (*) (*) 2,906 2,478 3,243 2,601
44814 Family clothing stores.......................... (*) (*) (*) 6,596 5,268 7,083 5,949
4482 Shoe stores..................................... (*) (*) (*) 2,372 1,721 2,250 2,078
451 Sporting goods, hobby, book & music stores....... 21,141 8.2 7,524 6,482 7,135 6,910 5,862
452 General merchandise stores....................... 148,924 5.5 53,084 49,306 46,534 50,089 46,293
4521 Department stores (ex. L.D.).................... 39,808 2.0 14,724 13,419 11,665 14,197 12,806
4521 Department stores (incl. L.D.)(4)............... (*) (*) (*) 13,672 11,887 14,467 13,044
4529 Other general merchandise stores................ (*) (*) (*) 35,887 34,869 35,892 33,487
45291 Warehouse clubs & supercenters................. (*) (*) (*) 31,221 30,695 31,367 29,436
45299 All other gen. merchandise stores.............. (*) (*) (*) 4,666 4,174 4,525 4,051
453 Miscellaneous store retailers.................... 29,269 10.3 10,225 9,929 9,115 9,516 8,833
454 Nonstore retailers............................... 104,579 8.5 35,822 33,921 34,836 33,511 30,382
4541 Electronic shopping & mail-order houses......... (*) (*) (*) 24,732 25,526 24,693 21,645
722 Food services & drinking places.................. 126,510 9.2 45,549 41,146 39,815 41,825 37,207
(*) Advance estimates are not available for this kind of business.
(NA) Not available (a) Advance estimate (p) Preliminary estimate (r) Revised estimate
(1) For a full description of the NAICS codes used in this table, see http://www.census.gov/eos/www/naics
(2) Advance estimates are based on early reports obtained from a small sample of firms selected from the larger Monthly Retail Trade Survey (MRTS) sample.
All other estimates are from the MRTS sample.
(3) GAFO represents firms which specialize in department store types of merchandise and is comprised of furniture & home furnishings (442), electronics & appliances (443),
clothing & clothing accessories(448), sporting goods, hobby, book, and music (451), general merchandise(452), office supply, stationery, and gift stores(4532).
(4) Estimates include data for leased departments operated within department stores. Data for this line are not included in broader kind-of-business totals.
TABLE 2A. ESTIMATED CHANGE IN SALES FOR RETAIL AND FOOD SERVICES, BY KIND OF BUSINESS--March 2012
Estimates adjusted for seasonal variations and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes
(Estimates are shown as percents and are based on data from the Advance Monthly Retail Trade Survey,
Monthly Retail Trade Survey, and administrative records.)(*)
Mar Feb
2012 2012
adv. prel.
from-- from--
NAICS Kind of Business Feb Mar Jan Feb
Code 2012 2011 2012 2011
(p) (r) (r) (r)
Retail & food Services, total.................... +0.8 +6.5 +1.0 +6.4
Total (excl. motor vehicle & parts ).......... +0.8 +6.1 +0.9 +6.4
Retail .................................. +0.8 +6.5 +1.1 +6.3
441 Motor vehicle & parts dealers.................... +0.9 +8.3 +1.3 +6.6
4411,4412 Auto & other motor veh. dealers............... +1.1 +8.8 +1.5 +6.6
442 Furniture & home furnishings stores.............. +1.1 +6.6 -1.0 +8.3
443 Electronics & appliance stores................... +1.0 -3.1 +0.4 -2.0
444 Building material & garden eq. & supplies dealers +3.0 +14.1 +0.7 +12.5
445 Food & beverage stores........................... +0.4 +3.5 0.0 +3.1
4451 Grocery stores.................................. +0.3 +3.0 0.0 +3.1
446 Health & personal care stores.................... -0.2 +1.3 +0.4 +2.4
447 Gasoline stations................................ +1.1 +7.6 +3.6 +10.4
448 Clothing & clothing accessories stores........... +0.9 +7.9 +2.4 +8.8
451 Sporting goods, hobby, book & music stores........ +0.5 +5.4 +1.8 +5.7
452 General merchandise stores....................... +0.7 +3.7 -0.2 +2.9
4521 Department stores (ex. L.D.).................... +0.3 +0.7 +1.1 +0.1
453 Miscellaneous stores retailers................... -0.8 +9.3 +0.9 +8.8
454 Nonstore retailers............................... +0.7 +9.3 +1.2 +8.8
722 Food services & drinking places.................. +0.3 +6.3 +0.5 +7.5
(p) Preliminary estimate (r) Revised estimate
(*) Estimates shown in this table are derived from adjusted estimates provided in Table 1A of this report.
TABLE 2B. ESTIMATED CHANGE IN SALES FOR RETAIL AND FOOD SERVICES, BY KIND OF BUSINESS--March 2012
Data not adjusted for seasonal variations and holiday and trading-day differences and price changes.
(Estimates are shown as percents and are based on data from the Advance Monthly Retail Trade Survey,
Monthly Retail Trade Survey, and administrative records.)(*)
Mar Feb
2012 2012
adv. prel.
from-- from--
NAICS Kind of Business Feb Mar Jan Feb
Code 2012 2011 2012 2011
(p) (r) (r) (r)
Retail & food Services, total.................... +11.9 +7.4 +4.5 +10.2
Total (excl. motor vehicle & parts ).......... +10.7 +7.2 +2.7 +10.0
Retail .................................. +12.0 +7.2 +4.7 +10.2
441 Motor vehicle & parts dealers.................... +16.8 +8.1 +13.3 +11.3
4411,4412 Auto & other motor veh. dealers................ +17.5 +8.8 +14.1 +11.4
442 Furniture & home furnishings stores.............. +11.3 +7.9 +3.9 +12.5
443 Electronics & appliance stores................... +1.5 -1.6 +7.1 +1.5
444 Building material & garden eq. & supplies dealers +34.6 +12.4 +2.9 +16.3
445 Food & beverage stores........................... +7.4 +5.5 -1.8 +7.1
4451 Grocery stores.................................. +7.2 +4.9 -2.8 +7.0
446 Health & personal care stores.................... +5.6 +1.2 -0.5 +6.4
447 Gasoline stations................................ +14.8 +8.8 +2.0 +14.5
448 Clothing & clothing accessories stores........... +13.8 +12.5 +24.8 +13.1
451 Sporting goods, hobby, book & music stores........ +16.1 +8.9 -9.2 +10.6
452 General merchandise stores....................... +7.7 +6.0 +6.0 +6.5
4521 Department stores (ex. L.D.).................... +9.7 +3.7 +15.0 +4.8
453 Miscellaneous stores retailers................... +3.0 +7.5 +8.9 +12.4
454 Nonstore retailers............................... +5.6 +6.9 -2.6 +11.6
722 Food services & drinking places.................. +10.7 +8.9 +3.3 +10.6
(p) Preliminary estimate (r) Revised estimate
(*) Estimates shown in this table are derived from not adjusted estimates provided in Table 1B of this report.
SOURCE: Advance Monthly Sales for Retail Trade and Food Services--March 2012 (Press Release available without charge from Public Information Office, Bureau of the Census Washington, D.C. 20233). Survey methodology and measures of sampling variability are documented in the Advance Press Release. Questions concerning this report should be directed to Mr. Ian Thomas (301) 763-2713.