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For Immediate Release: Monday, March 07, 2016

Sales of Cars and Car Parts Dealers at $1 Trillion

Press Release Number CB16-TPS.74 *Revised*

Revised text in bold

MARCH 7, 2016 — Car and car parts dealers (NAICS 441) had sales of $1.0 trillion, representing an increase of 6.5 percent over the previous year, according to new statistics released today from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2014 Annual Retail Trade Survey.

Statistics presented for the entire retail trade sector (NAICS 44-45) and food services and drinking places (NAICS 722) increased 4.2 percent from $5.0 trillion in 2013 to $5.2 trillion in 2014.

The Annual Retail Trade Survey has been conducted each year since 1952 and covers approximately 22,000 employer businesses classified in the retail trade sector and accommodation and food services sector in the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Other highlights:

  • New car dealers (NAICS 44111) had sales of $785.1 billion in 2014, up 6.8 percent from $735.1 billion in 2013.
  • Gasoline stations’ (NAICS 447) sales decreased for the second consecutive year, from $547.5 billion in 2013 to $534.7 billion in 2014, or 2.4 percent.
  • Retail sales for food and beverage stores (NAICS 445) increased for the fifth consecutive year, climbing 4.5 percent to $669.9 billion. Sales for grocery stores (NAICS 4451) increased 4.4 percent to $599.7 billion.
  • Sales for nonstore retailers (NAICS 454) rose 8.5 percent to $470.2 billion; electronic shopping and mail order houses (NAICS 4541) had a 10.1 percent increase in sales to $386.1 billion.

The survey includes statistics for total annual sales, e-commerce sales, end-of-year inventories, purchases, total operating expenses, inventories held outside the United States, gross margins, and end-of-year accounts receivable for retail businesses. It also includes data on annual sales, total operating expenses, and e-commerce sales for accommodation and food service firms in the United States.

Sales and inventory data are also available through the Monthly Retail Trade Survey. The data provided by the Annual Retail Trade Survey provide greater detail at the NAICS level and provide additional data that are not available through the monthly surveys such as: sales taxes, annual purchases, gross margin, operating expenses, accounts receivable, and per capita retail sales.

All comparisons of sample-based estimates made in this release have been tested and found to be statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level, unless otherwise noted. Please consult the Annual Retail Trade Report website for measures of sampling variability for sample-based estimates <https://www.census.gov/retail/index.html>. All dollar values are expressed in current dollars, i.e., they are not adjusted for price changes. The statistics presented include data only for businesses with paid employees. For more information about the Annual Retail Trade Survey (including information on comparability, confidentiality protection, sampling error, nonsampling error and definitions), see <https://www.census.gov/retail/arts/how_surveys_are_collected.html>.


No news release associated with this report. Tip Sheet only.

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Contact


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pio@census.gov

Page Last Revised - December 16, 2021
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