25 March 2010

2010- n° 82

In February, households consumption in manufactured goods decreased (–1.2%) Household consumption expenditure on goods - February 2010

Households consumption in manufactured goods decreased in February by 1.2% in volume*, after - 2.5% in January.

[* Volumes are chained and all figures are trading days and seasonally adjusted.]

Expenditures in durables decreased again in February, but to a lesser extent than in January (–0.8% after –7.7%).

Car purchases decreased by 1.5% after a drop of 16.7% in January. The scrappage program was scaled down on January 1^st and this fostered automobiles expenditures at the end of the year 2009. As an after-effect, car purchases declined in early 2010.

Household durables purchases decreased (–0.4%) after being dynamic in January (+1.2%).

In February, expenditures in textile markedly decreased, by 5.4%, after two growing months (+1.9% in December and +1.6% in January). This drop is partly attributable to a change in the sales calendar: there are now 5 weeks of sales in January/February against 6 until 2008, the sixth week being chosen by the retailer.

Other manufactured goods expenditures increased in February (+0.2%, after -0.2% in January). In particular, sales in edition and press improved while those in jewellery weakened.

January growth of consumption in manufactured goods is now estimated at -2.5% (against -2.7% initially announced). The change in consumption in durables is scaled up by 0.1 point, car purchases are scaled up by 0.3 point, those in household durables scaled down by 0.1 point. Textile expenditures remain unchanged. Expenditures in other manufactured goods are scaled up by 0.2 point.

These revisions are mainly due to the update of seasonal and working day adjustment. To a lesser extent, they are explained by new informations on other manufactured goods.