NAICS 444 sales were down in December 2024
According to U.S. Census Bureau figures, retail and food services sales for December 2024 (adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences but not for price changes) were $729.2 billion. That's an increase of 0.4 percent from the previous month and up a robust 3.9 percent from December 2023.
December's NAICS 444 sales, which comprise building material suppliers as well as garden equipment and supplies dealers, dipped sharply from November. Unadjusted December 2024 sales for NAICS 444 were $36.279 billion, down from $40.005 billion in October. Year-over-year, December 2024's figures are down slightly compared to December 2023's (unadjusted) sales of $36.580 billion.
Overall in retail, the holiday season provided a nice bump. National Retail Federation Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said in a statement:
"Consumers came out to spend this holiday season and clearly underscored the solid growth in the US economy. The spending pace was back to pre-pandemic growth and indicates a good start for the year ahead. While the shorter holiday shopping calendar likely influenced the continued trend of more online shopping, there was also a return to in-person shopping experiences and a focus on early buying. The 2024 figures were driven in part by lower inflation compared with 2023, particularly for goods. Even though consumers are still relatively healthy and there was a notable increase in spending, they remain budget conscious.”
NRF reports that November-December holiday sales saw year-over-year gains in seven of nine retail categories, led by online sales, furniture stores and electronics and appliances stores.