Know The Difference Minute

Retail sales figures for November are in—and they’re not great. Down .6%, double the estimate.

What is Know The Difference Minute?

Hot topics, fresh stories and useful formation; all in 60 seconds

Retail cools off
Welcome to the Know the Difference Minute for Thursday, December 15th.
Retail sales figures for November are in—and they’re not great. Down .6%, double the estimate.
Furniture and home furnishings were off the most followed by building materials and garden centers—all down at least 2.5% and possibly linked to a soft housing market. If November wasn’t an active shopping month, we still got out. Food, beverage, bars, and restaurants were up.
Retail insiders believe families—especially those in lower income households---are making hard decisions on what to buy—and how to pay for it. 2023 credit card and loan delinquencies are projected to match levels not seen since 2010.
Is this a sign of more weakness to come—or a one-off to be rescued by an aggressive December? Economists point out that sales data is always unpredictable and bouncebacks are possible.
I’m Dave Spano from Annex Wealth Management. That is your Know the Difference Minute.