Retail Sales are Dropping
Retail sales are down. Big news across the country, but how does this really affect our industry? If you look at the different areas of sales you can almost see who’s being affected and how far will it go. Motor vehicle parts and dealers are the hardest hit, with a drop of a little over 23%. This is due, I feel because your repairs can wait until the last minute. People are going to eat and dress before they fix the car. Furniture and home furnishings were second with a 13 and a half percent drop. This surprises me since I would fix the car before I bought the new couch, but that’s just me I guess. Then there is retail, with a 3% drop.Got you worried? Not yet, this is only a 3% drop from a year ago, but you need to read the fine print to know this.
The media wants us to think that we are on our way down in a sinking ship, but we really aren’t. Look back to the 07’s when the economist reported on the retail drop of 1.2%. They had us all thinking the world was coming to end then. But it seems there is life after all. Sure we are in a slump, and it is hitting the trucking industry hard, but you do realize that we will be shipping products by trucks for many years to come. I can see the lower fuel prices have help, the larger trucking companies can be a little more competitive, and the independents can put a little away for a rainy day. In regards to the repairs, we have seen a significant decline in repairs. It is the necessary repairs that are being done, and fewer of the optional repairs.
What would be interesting to me and many of the drivers is if the insurance, tires and permit cost ore rising? Please comment on what increases you are seeing, and what decreases you are seeing?
