November 14, 2002 9:01 PM, EST

U.S. Oct. Retail Sales Flat, But Rise Without Autos

Import Prices Rise, Initial Claims Fall in Recent Reports

Even though a new government report said that overall retail sales were unchanged in October, evidence about what consumers bought gave observers hope that spending was rebounding, Bloomberg said.

The report by the Commerce Department said Thursday that overall retail sales totaled $301.7 billion, essentially unchanged from the $301.6 billion spend in September. The key data was in October’s retail sales when auto sales are discounted.

Excluding auto sales, the report said, retail sales totaled $230 billion – up 0.7% from the previous month. Analysts said that the increase in ex-auto sales could be a sign that consumer spending is stabilizing in advance of the busy holiday shopping season, Bloomberg reported.

The increase in ex-auto sales was the largest since a 0.9% gain in April.

Retail sales often drive factory orders, which can boost truck shipments and improve demand for trucking services.

Sales at retailers like Gap Inc. and J.C. Penney Co. were up, according to their own statistics; and the Commerce Department said that sales at clothing and accessory stores overall rose 4% in October – their biggest gain in 10 months – and following a 1.6% decline in September.

Two separate reports, released by the Labor Department, said that initial jobless claims dipped last week and that prices of imported goods rose 0.1% during October.

The rise in import prices was the fourth increase in as many months, the Labor Department said. Excluding petroleum imports, however, import prices slipped 0.1%.

Analysts told Bloomberg that the decline in prices excluding oil imports show the effects of the worldwide economic slowdown and a global excess of production capacity.

The jobless claim data was buttressed by a decline in the four-week moving average to 396,750 from 403,250 last week. The moving average is used to strip the week-to-week volatility out of the data. In just the week ended Nov. 9, the number of people applying for unemployment benefits for the first time totaled 388,000, Labor said.