Original title: "terrorist data" US retail sales in September were better than expected, but still faced with supply chain bottlenecks, gold prices fell by $4 in the short term
On Friday, 20:30 Beijing time, the US released the market-focused terrorist data on US retail sales in September, which beat expectations. Other less influential import price indices in September and the New York Fed manufacturing index in October fell less than expected, and spot gold prices fell slightly by $4 in the short term after a series of US data, extending the day's decline.
Picture: spot gold price 5 minutes chart
Specific data show that the monthly rate of retail sales in the United States in September actually announced 0.7%, expected to be-0.2%, with a previous value of 0.7%; the annual rate of retail sales in the United States in September was actually released at an annual rate of 13.95%, with a previous value of 15.1%. The monthly rate of core retail sales in the United States in September actually announced 0.80%, which is expected to be 0.5%, with a previous value of 1.8%.
The analysis pointed out that although US retail sales have fallen from their peak in April and there are some problems in the supply chain, the overall US retail data is still strong, and the high level of US retail sales is a key factor behind the strong global demand for goods.
The analysis points out that retail data have always played an important guiding role in judging the current economic situation and prospects in the United States, because retail sales directly reflect changes in consumer spending. For supply bottlenecks and inflationary pressures, it is important that sales data stabilize or start to decline.
Another analyst pointed out that the US retail market still faces supply chain bottlenecks. In order to ensure a smooth supply chain, many American retail giants have previously rented container ships to transport their own goods. However, this round of supply chain tension is mainly due to congestion in US ports and obstruction of ship operations.
If the port congestion is not alleviated, the investment of more ships will only cause the number of ships in the queue to continue to increase, forming a vicious circle. At present, the ship congestion in US ports is still deteriorating, and the number of ships arriving at the port waiting to be unloaded every day greatly exceeds the number of departing ships.
From the perspective of American retailers, after chartering ships at high prices, they still have to face the problem of delay in goods. Inventory and sales plans have been completely disrupted, and the US retail market is worrying in the coming months.
According to media reports, Walmart Inc aloneAt present, a company has a large number of goods arriving in the United States, but it is unable to unload them. Walmart Inc's shelves have become more and more empty, but the store is helpless. Similarly, Costco, the largest chain of membership warehouses in the US, has announced restrictions on consumers buying everyday items such as toilet paper, paper towels and bottled water because of limited inventory.
Dollar Tree, a well-known dollar store in the US, said it would sell goods at more than a dollar in all Dollar Tree Plus stores to offset rising costs. At present, many professional organizations have advised consumers in Europe and the United States not to wait for the shopping season, to buy the goods they want to buy as soon as possible, and to say that they will be out of stock one day.
Burt Flickinger, general manager of retail consultancy Strategic Resource Group, believes that 20% of the 25% of goods currently stranded on board are likely to miss this year's Black Friday.
Craig Fuller, founder and CEO of Freightwaves, advises: buy things that are hard to get now, instead of waiting for the holidays. He expects toys, clothing and electronics to be the hardest to buy this year, and the supply chain may not return to normal until 2023.
The September retail sales data were accompanied by the US import price index for September and the New York Fed manufacturing index for October.
Specific data show that the monthly rate of the US import price index in September is 0.40%, the expected 0.6%, the previous value is-0.3%; the annual rate of the US import price index in September is 9.20%, the expected 9.4%, and the previous value is 9%.
In October, the New York Fed's manufacturing index actually released 19.80, with an expected value of 25, with a previous value of 34.3.
At 20:35 Beijing time, the spot gold price was 1771.40 US dollars per ounce.