To provide current estimates of sales at retail and food service stores
and inventories held by retail stores. The United States Code, Title 13, authorizes
this survey and provides for voluntary responses. Companies with one or more establishments that sell merchandise and related
services to final consumers. Retail firms provide data on dollar value of retail sales and sales for selected
establishments; some firms also provide data on value of end-of-month inventories. The survey has been conducted monthly since 1951. A new sample is chosen approximately
every 5 years.
A mail-out/mail-back survey of about 12,500 retail businesses with paid employees;
supplemented by estimates for nonemployers, new employers, and missed employers
obtained from benchmarking to the Annual Retail Trade Survey (ARTS). The sample
of retail firms is drawn from the Business Register which contains all Employer
Identification Numbers (EINs) and listed establishment locations. Sales and
inventories data are collected using one combined survey form. Firms selected for the survey are first stratified by major kind of business
and estimated sales. All firms with sales above applicable size cutoffs are
selected into the survey with certainty (i.e., probability equal to one) and
report for all their retail establishments.Approximately 3,300 of the 12,500
are selected with certainty. EINs are stratified by major kind of business and
sales, and randomly selected from each stratum. The sample is updated quarterly to reflect employer business "births"
and "deaths"; adding new employer businesses identified in the Business
and Professional Classification Survey and dropping firms and EINs when it is
determined they are no longer active. There is about a 9 month delay before
new firms are represented in the sample. Monthly Retail Trade, Sales and Inventories
reports are released approximately 6 weeks after the close of the reference
month. They contain preliminary figures for the current month and final figures
for the prior 12 months. Statistics include retail sales, inventories, and ratios
of inventories-to-sales. Data are both seasonally adjusted and unadjusted. Manufacturing and Trade
Inventories and Sales reports are released approximately 6 weeks after
the close of the reference month. These reports are compilations of wholesale,
manufacturing, and retail trade and contain preliminary figures for the current
month and final figures for the prior 12 months. Statistics include total business sales, inventories, and ratios of inventories-to-sales.
Data are both seasonally adjusted and unadjusted. Quarterly Retail E-commerce
Sales reports are released approximately 7 weeks after the close of
the reference quarter. These reports contain preliminary estimates of sales
and e-commerce sales for the current quarter and final estimates of the prior
quarters. Estimates are provided for the Total Retail sector on both an adjusted
and unadjusted basis. Estimates of sales and inventories are revised each spring based on the benchmarking
to the ARTS. These revisions are released via the Internet and contain revised
estimates, adjusted and unadjusted, of sales, end-of-month inventories, and
inventories-to-sales ratios. These data are widely used throughout government, academic, and business communities.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis uses the estimates to calculate Gross Domestic
Product. The Bureau of Labor Statistics uses the estimates to develop consumer
price indexes and productivity measurements. The Council of Economic Advisers
uses the estimates to analyze current economic activity. The Federal Reserve
Board uses the estimates to assess recent trends in consumer purchases. The
media use the estimates to report news of recent consumer activity. Financial
and investment companies use the estimates to measure recent economic trends.
Contributes to two designated principal economic indicators. This survey is
an integral component of the Advance Monthly Retail Sales Survey and
the Manufacturing and Trade Inventories and Sales Report.
Business
and Professional Classification Survey EXPLORE INFORMATION CONTINUE OVERVIEW Last revised:
December 15, 2008
MONTHLY RETAIL SALES SURVEY
PURPOSE
COVERAGE
CONTENT
FREQUENCY
METHODS
PRODUCTS
USES
SPECIAL FEATURES
RELATED PROGRAMS