November retail sales rise more than expected
November retail sales rose 1.3 percent, the Commerce Department said moments ago, beating forecasters' expectations of a .5 percent rise.
The November number beats the October number, which showed retail sales rose 1.1 percent from the month before, so it looks like people are gearing up to spend some money durng the holiday season.
Sales of electronics were up strongly last month.
If you remove auto sales, November retail sales rose 1.2 percent, which is a strong number.
Miller Tabak equity strategist Peter Boockvar reminds us that the monthly retail number always excludes the world's largest retailer -- Wal-Mart, which does not provide monthly sales figures -- and that only 25 percent of the number is based on hard data, with the rest estimated.
In other news, import prices rose 1.7 percent from last month and are up 3.7 percent, year-over-year, which is why the price of that Korean flat-screen TV you've been eyeing seems higher. It is.
-- Frank Ahrens
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By
Frank Ahrens
|
December 11, 2009; 8:40 AM ET
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The Ticker
| Tags: import prices, retail sales
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Posted by: Steve94 | December 11, 2009 9:36 AM | Report abuse
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Why would anyone spend money in November? I have no clue... so what we bought a bunch of cheap toys that were made in China... What happens in January when retail sales plummet, temporary jobs are removed from the payrolls... Not to mention less money in peoples pockets do to the need to spend the extra cash on heating oil... How will the numbers be spun then?