Statement from U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke on July 2009 Retail Sales

The U.S. Commerce Department's U.S. Census Bureau today released retail sales for July 2009. Retail sales edged down 0.1% in July, following a strong rise of 0.8% in June. The total increase over the last three months is the strongest three-month performance since December 2007.

“Despite the slight decline in retail sales we remain encouraged that the Recovery Act and other economic initiatives have stabilized conditions and helped those harmed by the economic crisis,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said. “The cash-for-clunkers trade-in program led to a significant spark in sales in the hard-pressed motor vehicle industry. And stimulus dollars boosted disposable income in the first half of this year signaling a bottoming out of the recession. The road to recovery is long, but with every Recovery dollar we spend and project we start, we are one step closer to getting there.”