UBT - My Perspective On The Murk Of Official Retail-Sales Inflation With Some Surprising Illustrations
Originally published June 14, 2019
My couch, jeans, car, PC, sheets, and phone weigh in on globalization and the internet.
Retail sales, not including sales at restaurants and bars, in May rose 3.1% from a year earlier, according to the Commerce Department this morning. That's not exactly spectacular growth, but it's OK-ish. Since 2013, year-over-year retail sales growth has ranged between 1.0% and 6.5%. But how is retail-sales growth doing if adjusted for inflation? And suddenly, we descend to the murky spot where my life intersects the data.
Inflation as measured by the Consumer Price