
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, March 13, 1990                   TAG: 9003133459
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A6   EDITION: EVENING 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                 LENGTH: Short

RETAIL SALES DOWN 0.9% IN FEBRUARY

Retail sales fell 0.9 percent in February, the sharpest decline since October, the government reported today.

The Commerce Department said sales totaled a seasonally adjusted $146.5 billion after rising a revised 2.8 percent in January. Sales dropped 1.3 percent last October, rose 0.7 percent in November but slipped 0.3 percent in December.

Much of January's strength, which originally was reported to be a 1.6 percent gain, came from a 9.9 percent jump in automobile sales after cash rebates and low-interest financing were restored to attract prospective buyers to dealer showrooms.

The incentives remained in effect in February, but nevertheless sales fell 6.0 percent. It was the biggest drop since auto sales fell 26.5 percent in January 1987. Automobiles represent about 20 percent of retail sales.

Excluding autos, retail sales rose 0.5 percent in February.

Retail sales, representing about one-third of the nation's economic activity, are watched as a barometer of economic growth. The construction and much of the manufacturing sectors of the economy have been battered by high interest rates as the Federal Reserve kept a tight rein on credit to cap inflation.

Sales of durable goods - big-ticket items expected to last more than three years - dropped 3.0 percent last month after advancing 6.7 percent in January.

Building materials rose 1.4 percent after a 2.2 percent gain a month earlier. Furniture and home furnishings rose 0.5 percent following a 3.6 percent increase in January.

by CNB