Question
What is the distinction between the U.S. Census Bureau monthly series for RTFS.IUSA "retail sales and food services sales" versus RT.IUSA "retail sales"?
Answer
The system of retail surveys conducted by the Census Bureau are organized by "kind of business" under NAICS, which classifies industries, not products; that is, by type of store, not by type of product sold. At the highest level of aggregation, the Advanced Monthly Retail Trade Report provides "advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales ... adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes ..." (emphasis ours).
Under NAICS, "retail" is branches 44 to 45 (including 445 "food and beverage stores"), whereas "food services" (restaurants and similar) is under 72. Moreover, it's useful to separate the effects of 441 "motor vehicles and parts dealers" and 447 "gasoline stations". Hence, there are six combinations that are alternative "totals." They are called:
- WRLSLRTFSCM.IUSA = Retail and food services sales
- WRLSLRTFSXVCM.IUSA = Retail sales and food services excl. motor vehicle and parts (a.k.a. "retail x-auto")
- WRLSLRTFSXGCM.IUSA = Retail sales and food services excl. gasoline stations
- WRLSLRTFSXVGCM.IUSA = Retail sales and food services excl. motor vehicles; parts; gasoline stations
- WRLSLRTCM.IUSA = Retail sales - Total
- WRLSLRTXVCM.IUSA = Retail sales - Total excl. motor vehicle and parts dealers
That is:
- BOC's reported "total" is retail plus food services
- Total less NAICS 441 = Retail less motor vehicles and parts plus food services
- Total less NAICS 447
- Total less NAICS 441 and 447
- Total less NAICS 722 = Retail-only
- Total less NAICS 441 and 722 = Retail-only less motor vehicles and parts
(These are the seasonally adjusted mnemonics; corresponding NSA series exist. Legacy mnemonics like RTFS.IUSA survive as aliases.)
Individual series metadata use the source's phrasing.
The related "inventory and inventory-sales ratios" report makes the distinction between "retail" and "retail less 441" but "food services" is beyond its scope.
The related annual report (the ARTS) contains multiple tables, some of which report "retail and food services" but others limit themselves to strict "retail". The "per capita sales" table reports "retail total" but also 722 separately. Please scrutinize the catalog and description metadata.
Updates
- Jan 2015 - Initial version
- Jan 2018 - Geo codes updated to IUSA
- Apr 2019 - Mnemonics per 2018 reclassification
Related Releases
Advance Monthly Retail Trade Report
Annual Retail Trade Survey (ARTS)
Monthly Retail Trade Survey