Retail Sales

There may be no second acts in American lives, but there's always another act for an American idol. "American Idol's" first champ, Kelly Clarkson, returned to the top of the U.S. pop charts, with her new album, "All I Ever Wanted," bowing at No. 1, an encouraging start after disappointing sales of her 2007 effort, "My December." The new album sold 255,000 copies in its first week in stores in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan data released to Billboard.

Video game players shrugged off the recession last month by taking out their economic anxieties on fighting and exercise games. Game revenue grew 9% in February to $733.5 million, powered by the release of titles based on popular franchises such as Street Fighter and Killzone, according to a report Thursday by tracking firm NPD Group Inc. "Software sales were remarkable, given that last February's sales spiked 48% with the release of Super Smash Bros.

In these tough economic times, what's a store to do to make sure it's still in business a year from now? "Get a tarot card reader," said Emese Boone, owner of Box Turtle in Little Rock, Ark. And she's not kidding -- Boone hired a local tarot card reader to give free readings during a recent jewelry trunk show in her clothing, jewelry and housewares shop.

Retail sales in the U.S. unexpectedly dropped in March for the first time in three months, raising concern the biggest part of the economy may falter again heading into the second quarter. Purchases fell 1.1%, with declines affecting almost every sector, including car dealers, electronics stores and restaurants, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Only pharmacies and grocery stores saw a gain. Separately, the Labor Department said wholesale prices fell, indicating that deflation risks remain.

Sales of video games plunged 17% in March as shoppers found fewer blockbuster titles to choose from this year than last, according to a report Thursday from the NPD Group Inc. "This industry is driven by hits," said Jesse Divnich, director of analytical services with Electronic Entertainment Design and Research. "It just so happens that there were fewer hits last month than there were [in March] last year."

For the moment, Apple Inc.'s iPhone has been unseated from its throne. Research in Motion's BlackBerry Curve replaced the iPhone as the best-selling smartphone among consumers in the first quarter, the NPD Group said Monday. The iPhone came in second, with two other BlackBerry models -- the Storm and the Pearl -- right behind.

Stock prices slumped Thursday, erasing part of a surge earlier in the week, as investors braced for banking industry "stress test" results after trading ended as well today's scheduled release of April job data. Major market indicators dropped more than 1%, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which lost 102 points. Stock futures turned higher late Thursday after the government released the stress test results, which were largely as expected.

In death, Michael Jackson is a bestseller again. Along Hollywood Boulevard on Friday, mourners snapped up glossy posters and T-shirts bearing the singer's image from rows of sidewalk sellers. Online retailers reported that they were placing back orders for sold-out merchandise and working with suppliers to meet the staggering demand. Elsewhere, business was brisk in pretty much all things MJ. "This is simply unprecedented," said Bill Carr, vice president of music and video at Amazon.com Inc.

Coupons and discounts will be the hottest styles for back-to-school shoppers this year. Summer is not even half over, but retailers throughout the Southland are gearing up for back-to-school season with new youth fashions, nifty office supplies and steep bargains. "All eyes are shifting to back-to-school -- it's the only catalyst where consumers have to go out and spend between now and the holiday shopping season," said Ken Perkins, president of research company Retail Metrics Inc.

The video game industry experienced a stomach-churning 29% drop in U.S. sales in July, its third-worst year-over-year slide since January 1995, when NPD Group Inc. first began tracking sales data. The monthly decline, the industry's fifth consecutive drop, means game console and software sales are now down 14% from January through July this year compared with the first seven months of 2008. To climb out of the red zone, sales from August through December would need to grow 11% from a year earlier, NPD analyst Anita Frazier said.