Modest Gain in Bookstore Sales for October

Posted Monday, Dec 15, 2003

October bookstore sales of $1,064 million were 3.5 percent ahead of the $1,028 million sales figure of a year ago, according to preliminary figures released by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, Current Retail Trade Branch.

With the Census Bureau's recent adjustment of September figures upward from $1,491 million to $1,524 million, October is the fifth month in a row that bookstore sales showed improvement over the previous year.

Overall retail sales for October 2003 of $320 billion were 7.0 percent ahead of the $299 billion in October 2002.

2002-2003 RETAIL SALES for BOOKSTORES (unadjusted)

Period
2002 Final (Millions of Dollars)
2003 (Millions of Dollars)
% Increase 2003 Over 2002
January
2,039
2,094
2.7
February
1,037
1,005
(3.1)
March
1,045
929
(11.1)
April
969
984
1.5
May
1,142
1,105
(3.2)
June
1,073
1,179
9.9
July
1,059
1,129
6.6
August
1,825
2,083
14.1
September
1,505
1,524
1.3
October
1,028
1,064 (p)
3.5
YTD
12,722
13,096
2.9

(p) Preliminary figure

Note: Estimates reflect sales of all types of participating bookstores, including trade, college, religious, chain stores (including superstores), and others. A bookstore is defined as any retail establishment with sales comprised of more than 50 percent new books and periodicals, and estimates include sales of all products in these stores.

Source: Bureau of the Census, Current Retail Trade Branch.


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