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December Bookstore Sales End Eight-Month Slide
Printer-friendly versionPreliminary reports from the Current Retail Trade Branch of the Bureau of the Census show retail sales at bookstores during December 2004 were fractionally higher than the previous December. Sales for the final month of the year ended an eight-month slide in bookstore sales and offered hope that bookstore sales may finally be turning the corner. December 2004 bookstore sales of $2,122 million were 0.05 percent higher than the $2,121 million of December 2003.
Overall retail sales continue to outperform bookstore sales. Overall retail sales of $406 billion for December 2004 were 9.1 percent better than the $372 billion reported in December of 2003.
Retail sales at bookstores for the year 2004 were nearly one percent below sales for 2003.
2003-2004 RETAIL SALES for BOOKSTORES (unadjusted)
| Period | 2003 Final (Millions of Dollars) |
2004 (Millions of Dollars) |
% Change 2004 over 2003 |
| January | 2,172 | 2,153 | (0.9) |
| February | 1,043 | 1,144 | 9.7 |
| March | 963 | 1,067 | 10.8 |
| April | 1,018 | 1,016 | (0.2) |
| May | 1,143 | 1,097 | (4.0) |
| June | 1,222 | 1,191 | (2.5) |
| July | 1,175 | 1,154 | (1.8) |
| August | 2,167 | 2,080 | (4.0) |
| September | 1,586 | 1,526 | (3.8) |
| October | 1,109 | 1,063 | (4.1) |
| November | 1,090 | 1,055 | (3.2) |
| December | 2,121 | 2,122 (p) | .05 |
| YTD | 16,809 | 16,668 | (0.8) |
(p) Preliminary figure
Note: Estimates reflect sales of all types of participating bookstore, 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.