US retail sales rose in May - - the third rise in five months - - but the data is in current dollar terms and a big factor in the rise was due to gasoline station receipts resulting from higher oil prices. In another economic report, the number of US workers filing new claims for unemployment welfare benefits fell last week, signalling an improvement in the labour market. However, continuing claims hit their 19th-straight record high, indicating the difficulty of finding work.
The Commerce Department reported a 0.5% increase in retail sales reported Thursday, which was smaller than expected.
Sales increases tended to be among sellers of essential items, such as food and clothes.
Gas station sales rose 3.6%. Excluding gasoline sales, other retailers' sales increased 0.2%. Gas prices have risen about 28% in the past six weeks, driving station receipts.
Overall retail sales in April were revised higher, decreasing 0.2% instead of 0.4% as previously reported. March sales fell 1.2% instead of 1.3%.
Sales rose 1.7% in January and 0.4% in February, following six straight declines.
Initial claims for unemployment benefit dipped 24,000 to 601,000 in the week ended June 6th, the Labor Department reported today. Claims have fallen over 40,000 in the four weeks.
The four-week average of new claims, fell 10,500 to 621,750, the lowest level since mid-February.
The Labor Department reported continuing benefit claims jumped 59,000 to 6,816,000, the 19th-straight record high. The previous week, which had been reported as a fall, was revised to show a small increase.
The Commerce Department also reported that US businesses cut their inventories in April, signalling firms made progress in cutting stocks.
Inventories fell 1.1% drop to a seasonally adjusted $1.385 trillion followed a revised 1.3% decrease in March. Originally, March inventories were seen down 1.0%.
Business sales dropped by 0.3% to $966.8 billion in April. Sales in March dropped 1.8%.
The inventory-to-sales ratio fell in April, to 1.43 from 1.44 during March.
