Furniture's Rollercoaster. Growth Signs, Consumer Confidence, and Supply Chain Threats

Originally published August 28, 2024. This version was rebuilt from the Census Bureau's retail report, The Conference Board and CN's statement on the CIRB order for the FIN archive, and the facts are as of that date.

Late August 2024 brought a small gain for furniture stores, slightly better consumer confidence and relief from a rail shutdown that threatened cross-border freight.

The short version

• Census said furniture and home furnishings store sales rose 0.5% in July.
• The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index rose to 103.3 in August.
• CN said the CIRB imposed binding arbitration and barred further work stoppages.

Positive signs in furniture retail sales

The Census Bureau's advance report showed furniture and home furnishings store sales up 0.5% in July from June, though still 2.4% below July 2023. Total retail and food services sales rose 1.0% to $709.7 billion.

A monthly gain was welcome after a long slide, but the annual decline showed furniture still lagging the rest of retail.

Consumer confidence. A mixed bag

The Conference Board said its index rose in August to 103.3 from an upwardly revised 101.9 in July. The Present Situation Index improved to 134.4 and the Expectations Index improved to 82.5.

The board's headline said consumers showed more concern about the labor market even as overall confidence ticked up. Job worries tend to delay big-ticket purchases like furniture.

Supply chain relief. Canadian rail

CN said the Canada Industrial Relations Board had imposed binding arbitration between the railway and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference and ordered that no further strike or lockout could occur during arbitration, voiding the union's strike notice.

The order extended the current collective agreement until a new one was in place. For furniture and component shippers moving goods between Canada and the U.S., it ended a shutdown that had threatened cross-border freight.

Looking ahead

July sales offered a small lift, confidence was steady and a rail crisis was defused. Furniture companies headed into the fall with fewer immediate threats but no real demand recovery yet.

Related on FIN

• Furniture Store Sales Fell 2.7%. Every Other Category Grew.
• Furniture Shoppers Are Holding Back

Sources

• U.S. Census Bureau, Advance monthly retail sales, July 2024
• The Conference Board, US consumer confidence rises slightly in August (Aug. 27, 2024)
• CN, CN receives order of binding arbitration (Aug. 24, 2024)