Headlines

COVID-19: April Retail Sales Drop Twice as Much as March

The U.S. Census Bureau says overall retail sales were down 16.4 percent seasonally adjusted from March

Published

4 years ago

May 15, 2020

VMSD Staff

Retail sales dropped twice as much in April as they did in March, according to a press statement by the National Retail Federation (NRF; Washington, D.C.).

NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said: “As predicted, retail sales were bad in April and lower than in March … This should come as no surprise since April was the first full month when most businesses not considered essential were closed, both in retail and across the economy. But month-to-month comparisons provide little insight other than indicating that most of the economy was on lockdown. Now that we’re in mid-May, many businesses are already starting to reopen. Relief payments and pent-up demand should provide some degree of post-shutdown rebound, but spending will be far from normal and may be choppy going forward.”

The U.S. Census Bureau reported, according to the NRF, that overall retail sales were down during April 16.4 percent seasonally adjusted from March, and down 21.6 percent unadjusted year-over-year.