April retail sales showed a decline in every category, topping out at a -78.8% decline in the “Clothing and Accessories” category. Every category but one, that is. The lone retail category to gain ground in April was “Nonstore Retailers”, kind of a roundabout way of saying “online sellers”. Led by Amazon, online retailers have seen a big jump in sales. In the first quarter, Amazon reported sales jumped 26% year-over-year as consumers flocked to its site. The sales volume was so high that the company temporarily halted delivery for non-essential items and has hired an additional 175,000 workers, with still more being sought. And Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos could become earth’s first trillionaire: the firm Comparisun predicts that Bezos could reach such an astounding level of wealth by 2026, if his wealth continues to increase at the pace of the past 5 years. (chart from cnbc.com)
Retail Sales and the 1st Trillionaire
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May 18, 2020