by Slight increase on home furnishings spending is the smallest gain so far this year
WASHINGTON — Furniture store sales managed a meager .5% gain from October 2024, another sign that sales continue to slow as consumers manage rising costs from tariffs and other factors affecting the price of goods and services.
According to estimates released Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Commerce, furniture store sales rose .5% to just $11.3 billion, compared with $11.2 billion in October 2024. They rose 2.3% from just over $11 billion in September. The year-over-year increase was the smallest posted in furniture sales so far this year.
Overall retail sales rose 3.5% to $732.6 billion, from $708.1 billion in October 2024. They were level with September, the report noted.
The segment with the largest percentage gain was miscellaneous store retailers such as florists, pet supply stores and religious supply stores, which rose 9.5% to $15.2 billion, from $13.9 billion in October last year. This was followed by non-store retailers such as catalogs and e-commerce specialists, which rose 9% to $131.1 billion, from $120.3 billion; clothing and clothing accessories stores, which rose 5.7% to $27.1 from $25.7 million; and health and beauty stores, which also rose 5.7% to $40.4 billion, from $38.2 billion; electronics and appliance stores, which rose 4.9% to $7.8 billion, from $7.4 billion; sporting goods, hobby, musical instrument and bookstores, which rose 4.6% to $8.2 billion, from $7.8 billion; and restaurants and bars, up 4.1% to $99.4 billion, from $95.5 billion.
Also seeing a year-over-year increase in sales were food and beverage stores, up 2.2% to $85.4 billion from $83.5 billion; general merchandise stores, including department stores, up 2% to $77.5 billion, from $76 billion; gasoline stations, up 1.9% to $52.3 billion, from $51.3 billion; and motor vehicle and parts dealers, up 1.2% to $137.2 billion, from $135.6 billion.
The only sector that saw a drop was building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers, down 4.5% to $39.7 billion, from $41.5 billion.
With Black Friday and preholiday sales last month, furniture could see some gains in the November estimates coming out next month. However, that also will depend on consumer confidence levels and general attitudes about spending on high-ticket durable goods such as furniture.
