September CPI For Sporting Goods Remains Negative

WASHINGTON, D.C. (BRAIN)--Recent retail data suggests specialty retailers won't be able to boost prices to increase overall sales this holiday season.

The most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed the Sporting Goods Consumer Price Index (CPI) at 101.7 for September, down 2.7 percent versus the September 2001 index. The drop was slightly more than the August decline of 2.6 percent.

The CPI for Sporting Goods provides an indicator of the ability to increase consumer prices for sports equipment. For the first nine months of 2002, the CPI for Sporting Goods has declined an average of 2.8 percent. The CPI for all items in September increased 1.5 percent from the same month last year.

Casting more uncertainty on the holiday retail season, consumer confidence plunged to a nine-year low last week. The decline marked the fourth consecutive weakening of the Conference Board's consumer confidence index. The index now stands at 79.4, down from 93.7 in September and well below its post-Sept. 11 low of 85.5.

The last time the index fell was this low was in November 1993, when it stood at 71.9.