http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080312/bs_nm/...Jf20Y2R2_Gs0NUE


Retail sales tumble in February
1 hour, 7 minutes ago
3-11-8



NEW YORK (Reuters) - Retail sales fell at the fastest pace in at least five years and could tip an already fragile economy into recession, according to a private report released on Wednesday.

Retail sales tumbled 1.1 percent last month, compared with a 0.2 percent gain in January, said SpendingPulse, the retail data service of MasterCard Advisors, an arm of MasterCard Worldwide (MA.N). The report excludes auto sales.

"It's definitely the biggest drop in our history," said Kamalesh Rao, director of economic research at MasterCard Advisors. SpendingPulse's retail data series started in 2003.

The drop in retail sales may be a signal that consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, has finally buckled under the weight of a housing bust, a weakening job market and soaring food and energy prices.

"This is reflecting what is happening in the labor market. We have been seeing a souring in spending in the past couple of months," he said.

On Friday, the government reported net job loss for a second straight month in February, which surprised economists and raised worries that the United States may be in a recession.

In February, consumers cut back on nearly all types of items. Even the few bright retail areas which had posted solid gains such as gasoline, groceries and electronics faltered, according to SpendingPulse.

SpendingPulse's "core" retail gauge declined 1.0 percent in February, compared with January, when sales were unchanged.

Core sales exclude autos, gasoline and building materials, which can swing sharply from month to month.

The SpendingPulse data are derived from the aggregate sales in the MasterCard U.S. payment network, coupled with estimates on all other payment methods including cash and check.

The government releases its retail sales report for February on Thursday. Sales excluding autos are expected to rise 0.2 percent, according to a Reuters poll of economists.

I buy only essentials now. I'm cutting costs wherever I can...Christmas was very low key. I have tuitions to pay. Remember after 9/11 Bush told us to "go shopping"....I doubt anyone can do that anymore unless they use credit cards. Most folks I know are in debt. Then again, this is a success for Shrub and Dick. They wanted to destroy the middle class and give tax breaks to the very wealthy. They've just about gotten it done. People worrying about how to "put food on their families" are less likely to be disruptive and have no time for politics. They're too busy surviving. I wouldn't call it a recession, I'd say we're headed into the second Great Depression.

How can Americans get to the mall if they can't afford the gas?

Over $4 a gallon in my neck of the woods. CA always has paid more due to emission control standards but why people aren't squawking about it absolutely mystifies me. There are lots of HUGE SUVs and GIGANTIC raised trucks here. It must cost a small fortune to fill those monsters up. I see a lot of "For Sale" signs on big vehicles now but there's a tax break for those who buy bigger heavier vehicles in CA. Total insanity. My little car gets over 300 miles on one tank and it costs me almost $50 to fill up sometimes.

Ahhh, memories.....

Gasoline is excluded from core sales.
Except that everything that requires transportation, or uses fuel for the manufacture, or uses things made from oil for the manufacture, anything that has anything in anyway to do with oil, which in one way or another is virtually everything, will cost more.

So even though the price of gas at the pump is excluded, the price of oil will be felt throughout our economy!