IDEX Online Research: US October Jewelry Sales Stay Solid
December 17, 13(IDEX Online) – Jewelry and watch sales in the U.S. totaled $5.41 billion in October, a 5.8 percent year-over-year increase, based on preliminary US government figures. In financial terms, the latest figures are largely in line with those seen for September, where revised figures show jewelry and watch sales of $5.45 billion in September, a 5.0-percent year-over-year increase.
The full analysis of the polished diamond prices is available to IDEX Online Research subscribers and IDEX Online members here.
Apart from a slow start in January followed by large jumps in sales seen in February and May this year, jewelry and watch sales have been largely consistent at around $5.4 billion. The changes in percentage terms can be seen in this graph.
After a fairly sharp decline on the year in September, retailers will be happy to see a change in direction in October ahead of the critical holiday sale season.
The stand-out element was a 14.8 percent rise on the year in specialty jewelers' sales which increased to $2.89 billion. However, this could yet turn out to be a government accounting error and is likely to be revised down next month when new data is published by the Department of Commerce.
For the first 10 months of 2013, jewelry and watch sales total $55.5 billion compared with $51.7 billion for the same period of 2012, up 7.3 percent year-over-year. The overall rise in retail sales is below that figure and with inflation running at less than 1 percent, jewelry sales have been higher than in 2012 and put in an impressive performance.
Total Jewelry Sales +5.5%
Jewelry sales alone, excluding watches, totaled $4.75 billion in October, up 5.5 percent year-over-year, based on US Department of Commerce data. This is well below the rises of 9-10 percent seen at the start of 2013, but nonetheless better than the 4.8 percent increase recorded in September.
Fine Watch Sales +7.5%
Watch sales in October are estimated to have been roughly in line with figures seen throughout the year of an estimated $651 million. However, they were up strongly on October 2012, posting a 7.5-percent increase.
Jewelry & Watch Spending
Another reason for optimism regarding jewelry sales can be seen in the following graph, showing that growth in jewelry sales continues to outpace the rise in overall retail sales. Given that the American economy has still not definitively proven that it is on a strong growth path, the figures can be regarded as all the more surprising.
Specialty Jewelers
Specialty Jewelers market share in October rose substantially from the previous month, accounting for 46.4 percent compared with 40.7 percent in September, leaving 53.6 percent for other merchants.
Outlook
The past 10 months have been characterized by a strong and steady interest among American consumers in jewelry. Although the figures were somewhat erratic through the year and did not show a definite trend, long-term growth appears to be indicated.
That may well be a result of the falling prices of raw materials that are used in jewelry with gold falling by more than 20 percent over the past year, silver down by in excess of 30 percent and polished diamonds largely standing still, though there are categories where prices have show significant increases.
The full analysis of the polished diamond prices is available to IDEX Online Research subscribers and IDEX Online members here. Click here for more information on how to subscribe or become a member.