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U.S. Jewelry Prices Decline
Retail Sales Rise on Improved Job Market
Dec 19, 2016 10:00 AM
By Rapaport News
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RAPAPORT... The U.S. consumer price index (CPI) for jewelry declined 3 percent
in November from the previous month, according to the
Bureau of Labor Statistics. The index, which is not seasonally adjusted, remains 9 percent above its level of a year ago.
The drop from the previous month comes as gold prices declined 8
percent in November to $1,171 per ounce, according to Kitco. However, the
RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI™) for 1-carat diamonds gained
0.5 percent in the same period.
Watch prices fell 4 percent from last month and gained 2
percent from a year ago. The CPI for jewelry and watches combined fell
3 percent but jumped 7 percent year on year.
Meanwhile, sales in U.S. specialty
jewelry stores increased 4.7 percent from a year ago to $2.18 billion in
October, according to preliminary data from the Census Bureau. That month, U.S.
jewelry prices climbed 0.2 percent from the previous month and jumped 7 percent
from a year ago.
Jewelry store sales grew 2 percent to $22.44 billion in the
first 10 months of the year.
Business improved in November too, according to the National
Retail Federation (NRF), which reported all retail sales grew 5 percent year on
year and crept up 0.1 percent from the previous month. Online and “non-store”
sales grew 15 percent year on year.
“The combination of job and wage gains led to solid holiday
spending by American households,” NRF chief economist Jack Kleinhenz said.
Ecommerce spending from desktop computers jumped
12 percent to $49.3 billion between November 1 and December 12, according to
ComScore.
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Tags:
consumer price index, cpi, Jewelry, jewelry prices, Jewelry sales, jewelry store sales, jewelry stores, prices, Rapaport News, retail, u.s., U.S. Census Bureau, u.s. jewelry sales, U.S. jewelry store sales
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