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Michigan retailers expect sunny summer sales Most Michigan retailers were anticipating
a better summer than last year. Sixty-four percent projected an increase
in June-August sales over the same period in 2001, according to the Michigan
Retail Index, a joint project of the Michigan Retailers Association and
the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. When combined with the 23 percent who projected
level sales and the 13 percent who predicted a falloff, the results create
a seasonally adjusted outlook index of 72.1. It was the highest level
of May optimism in two years, even though the three-month outlook fell
from 78.4 in April. Actual sales performance in May also improved
slightly, in contrast to national trends. Forty-six percent of Michigan retailers said
they increased sales over the same month last year, while 42 percent said
sales declined and 12 percent reported no change. The results create a
seasonally adjusted performance index of 51.3, up from 46.0 in both April
and March. Nationally, the U.S. Commerce Department reported a 0.9 percent
decline in retail sales during May. Larry Meyer, MRA chairman and CEO, said Michigan’s
retail industry continues to show improvement from last year. “A year ago, the retail industry was
in the doldrums,” said Meyer. “While still not spectacular,
this year’s performance continues to show improvement.” Regionally, stores in north and central Michigan
reported the best performance for the month, with 53 percent increasing
sales in northern Michigan and 50 percent increasing sales in central
Michigan. The east Michigan region, consisting of the Thumb and Saginaw
Bay areas, reported the worst results, with 33 percent of retailers increasing
sales. Jewelry retailers topped the list of trade
lines for May, with 56 percent increasing sales. General merchandise,
apparel and gift retailers were the lowest performers for the month. Complete results of this month’s Michigan Retail Index - including data on sales, inventory, prices, promotions and hiring - are available at www.retailers.com/news/retailindex.html. The website includes figures dating back to July 1994.
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