U.S. retail sales fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.5% in June to mark the third straight decline, the first time that's happened since midway through the last recession in 2008, according to the latest government data
Excluding autos, sales dropped 0.4%, the Commerce Department said Monday
Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had forecast a 0.2% increase in overall retail sales and no change excluding autos
Gasoline stations reported the biggest drop, down 1.8%, but almost every sector of the economy posted a decline
In the past 12 months, retail sales have risen 3.5%, but they fell in each month of the second quarter
Sales in May were unchanged at a 0.2% decline, while sales in April were revised down to a 0.5% drop from -0.2%
1 comentario:
Mattel Inc.'s second-quarter earnings rose 20% benefiting from the renewed momentum of its Barbie and Hot Wheels brands and toys tied to the new Batman movie.
"In the second quarter, we delivered solid performance as we continued to build momentum with key brands, such as Barbie, Monster High, American Girl and Hot Wheels, as well as the Batman - The Dark Night Rises property, despite a continued cautious global retail environment and a strengthening U.S. dollar," said Chief Executive Bryan G. Stockton.
The largest U.S. toy maker by revenue saw its two-year trend of increasing sales end in the first quarter as weakness in the mature North American market overshadowed its strong international growth. The combination of volatile crude oil prices, increased packaging expenses and the rising cost of labor in China's manufacturing hubs has also pressured its bottom line of late, prompting the company to increase toy prices in an effort to mitigate the higher costs.
Mattel reported a profit of $96.2 million, or 28 cents a share, up from $80.5 million, or 23 cents, a year earlier. Sales slipped 0.3% to $1.16 billion, reflecting four percentage points from an unfavorable change in currency exchange rates.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had most recently forecast earnings of 21 cents on revenue of $1.13 billion.
Gross margin rose to 51.3% from 47.9%.
Sales of Mattel's girls and boy brands unit--its biggest arm and the one that includes Barbie and Hot Wheels--fell 1.1% to $781.6 million. Barbie sales grew 5%, and Wheels sales were up 9%.
Meanwhile, sales increased 1.8% at Fisher-Price brands and rose 3.5% at its American Girl brands.
North American gross sales were up 1% and international gross sales were down 1%.
Shares closed Monday at $31.04 and were inactive premarket. The stock has gained 14% over the past year
Publicar un comentario