May 21, 2002 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Clothing prices down again in 2001

Prices paid by consumers for apparel fell 3.2 percent in 2001. This was the largest annual decline since 1952. Last year’s drop followed a decrease of 1.8 percent in 2000.

[Chart data—TXT]

Both apparel sales volumes and consumer confidence declined in 2000 and 2001. Demand for apparel was down during this period, especially at department stores and specialty clothing stores. Last year, even discount clothiers sold fewer clothes than normal.

These data are produced by the BLS Consumer Price Index program. For additional information on consumer price changes in 2001, see "Consumer inflation lower in 2001: energy and apparel prices declined," by Todd Wilson, Monthly Labor Review, March 2002. Annual percent changes are December-to-December changes.