Personal Consumption Expenditures – 2021

State-level data for Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE), the most comprehensive measure of consumer spending, came out this week.  The data are only available at an annual frequency, with the new data covering the year 2021.  Arkansas growth was 12.8%, slightly...

Arkansas Retail Sales – July & August 2021

The most recent information from our Retail Trade and Food Service Sales data show that consumers maintained a summer of soaring spending during July and August.  Compared to a year earlier, the July-August average was up 15.6% in Arkansas.  In the national Retail...

Personal Consumption Expenditures – 2020

The annual data on state-level Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) were published last week by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.  The data for Arkansas reaffirm our observation that Arkansas consumers maintained relatively high levels of spending during the depths...

Arkansas Retail Sales – March & April 2021

After a brief weather-related contraction in February, consumer spending surged in March and remained elevated in April.  Data for Arkansas Retail Sales shows that spending patterns in our state are matching the national data, with even larger increases relative to...

Arkansas Retail Sales – January 2021

Despite a sharp drop-off in automobile purchases, Arkansas Retail Sales increased sharply in January (seasonally adjusted).  Total Retail and Food Service Sales increased 6.1% from December.  Compared to a year earlier, sales were up 11.2%.  National Retail Sales...

Arkansas Consumer Spending in 2020

One of the most significant and unexpected features of the Arkansas economy during the COVID-19 pandemic has been the robust behavior of consumer spending.  Despite sharp increases in unemployment and losses in earnings, Arkansas consumers maintained and even exceeded...
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