SUPERMARKET SALES OFF 0.3% IN APRIL

ALLISON MAXWELL

WASHINGTON (FNS) -- Supermarket retail sales in April dropped 0.3%, but were still up 4.4% for the year, according to Commerce Department figures issued in mid-May.

In March, grocery retail sales dropped 0.1%, but were up 5.5% on the year. Retail sales at food stores also dropped 0.3% in April, but were up 4.2% for the year.

"Obviously, individual stores are doing very well, because there is virtually no inflation," said Don Ratajczak, director of the Economic Forecasting Center at Georgia State University, Atlanta.

Varying sales results were produced by other channels of retail trade.

Sales at apparel and accessories stores for the month increased a seasonally adjusted 0.9%, after March's revised gain of 0.2%. Compared with year-ago levels, April sales were up 5.4%.

General-merchandise stores -- discount, department and variety stores -- posted a decrease of 0.4%, after March's revised gain of 0.2%. Compared with April 1998, their sales last month were up 7.9%.

Ratajczak attributed the decline to this year's early Easter, which boosted retail sales in March instead of April. He also noted that some consumers' spent "pocket change" on higher gasoline prices.

National Retail Federation Chief Economist Rosalind Wells agreed: "April performed quite well on its own without the support of the Easter holiday. In order to get the complete picture you'd need to look at March and April combined."

Sales at department stores alone, excluding lease departments, decreased 0.3% in April, following a revised March gain of 0.8%.