ARLINGTON, Va.—Catastrophic. That’s the word being used by NAFCU Chief Economist and Vice President of Research Curt Long to describe retail sales after the first full month of nationwide stay-at-home orders.
Total retail sales plummeted 16.4% during the month, following March's revised 8.3% fall.
"The decline in April doubled the previous record for a single-month sales decline, set in March," Long noted. "With states beginning to reopen, sales levels should start to stabilize in May. But a robust recovery is unlikely with tens of millions out of work and plummeting consumer confidence. NAFCU expects a long, slow recovery.”
Year-over-year retail sales were down 21.6% in April, following March's year-over-year sales’ 5.9% drop. Control group sales, which excludes the auto, gas, and building materials categories, were down 17.4% in April.
"The major retail segments were in freefall, though mostly discretionary spending," Long said, with significant drops among the clothing sector (-78.8%), electronics sector (-60.6%), and furniture stores (-58.7%).
The only increase was in non-store retailers (i.e. online), which rose 8.4%.