Retail Sales Expected to Increase by 3.4% in 2012, NRF Says

Photo Credit: The Oregonian

Retail industry sales are expected to rise 3.4 percent to $2.53 trillion in 2012, according to the National Retail Federation—slightly lower than the pace of 2011, in which sales grew 4.7 percent. NRF excludes the sales of autos, gas and restaurants in its definition of retail sales.
Many economists estimate that real U.S. GDP will rise approximately 2.1 to 2.4