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Strategies & Market Trends : MARKET INDEX TECHNICAL ANALYSIS - MITA -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: J.T. who wrote (2902)	5/11/2000 12:49:00 PM
From: LBstocks	Respond to of 19219

US APRIL RETAIL SALES DOWN 0.2% IN FIRST DROP SINCE AUG 98 08:31 EDT 05/11 --Apr Non-auto Sales Flat; Durables -0.6%, Nondurables +0.1% --Mar Sales Revised Higher; 2Q Non-auto 4.9% SAAR Above 1Q --Apr Restaurants -0.4%, Apparel -0.9%, Gas -2.3%: Price and Calendar Effects --Autos -0.7%, Building Materials -1.6% By Joseph Plocek WASHINGTON (MktNews) - U.S. April retail sales fell 0.2% and were flat excluding autos, but March sales were revised up in a continuation of the recent pattern where statisticians find more sales after closing the month's books. This was the first drop in overall sales since a -0.1% was posted in August 1998. April's sales weakness was widespread. April sales excluding auto sales stand 4.9% SAAR above 1Q, showing still high consumption. However, the first-month gain of 2Q has decelerated compared with the similar growth rate for January, showing some moderation in economic growth. The odd math of quarterly growth calculations pits a first-month-of-the-quarter drop with upward revisions for the prior quarter's base and should produce a slowing in GDP estimates. April durables sales were off 0.6% as building materials fell 1.6% and autos dropped 0.7%. Building materials have been seesawing lately as mortgage interest rates rise. Nondurables sales gained just 0.1% as more food and general merchandise sales offset losses elsewhere. Gas sales were off 2.3%, apparel fell 0.9%, and restaurants fell 0.4%. Some of the weakness related to price drops, and some probably was the result of the unusually late Easter and Mothers Day holidays. The median estimates in a Market News International poll of economists were for +0.4% for overall April retail sales and +0.4% for non-autos.