Retail Sales Fall : First Drop Since 1982-83

Retail sales in Orange County suffered their first year-to-year decline since the last recession in the third quarter of 1990.

Although the drop was a slight 0.7%, the true dimensions of the falloff were masked by sharply higher gasoline prices that pumped up the dollar value of service station sales.

Statewide, sales at service stations jumped 14.8% from the year-earlier quarter. Hardest hit were new-car dealers and retailers specializing in lumber and building materials, which saw statewide sales down 5.9% and 5.2%, respectively.

Almost half of the county’s 29 cities reported retail sales declines, with Cypress and Huntington Beach more than 10% lower. At the other end of the scale, Fountain Valley saw a whopping 62.1% increase, and Brea, 15.8%.

CITY-BY-CITY BREAKDOWN

3rd Quarter 3rd Quarter % City 1990 1989 Change Anaheim $401,855 $416,399 -3.5 Brea 105,912 91,449 +15.8 Buena Park 159,975 174,226 -8.2 Costa Mesa 427,148 442,859 -3.6 Cypress 41,106 47,260 -13.0 Dana Point 38,271 NA NA Fountain Valley 120,386 74,275 +62.1 Fullerton 224,758 237,410 -5.3 Garden Grove 223,637 230,642 -3.0 Huntington Beach 305,445 342,339 -10.8 Irvine 251,129 235,940 +6.4 Laguna Beach 45,536 46,371 -1.8 Laguna Niguel 50,385 NA NA La Habra 83,156 76,632 +8.5 La Palma 9,185 NA NA Los Alamitos 29,507 26,106 +13.0 Mission Viejo 107,883 112,067 -3.7 Newport Beach 188,193 202,805 -7.2 Orange 298,153 304,355 -2.0 Placentia 46,840 49,846 -6.0 San Clemente 47,742 46,545 +2.6 San Juan Capistrano 59,473 60,936 -2.4 Santa Ana 408,151 433,091 -5.8 Seal Beach 25,600 22,828 +12.1 Stanton 42,514 41,996 +1.2 Tustin 151,915 136,761 +11.1 Villa Park 2,620 NA NA Westminster 175,334 171,927 +2.0 Yorba Linda 33,613 30,530 +10.1

Source: State Board of Equalization

COUNTYWIDE RETAIL SALES

Countywide retail sales fell 0.7% in the third quarter to $4.375 billion from $4.405 billion in 1989.

Year to Year Pct. Change

1985: +11.3%

1986: +6.5%

1987: +6.1%

1988: +7.8%

1989: +9.1%

1990: -0.7%

14 CITIES POST DECLINES

Fourteen of 25 cities in the county reported lower retail sales for the third quarter of 1990 than for the year-earlier quarter. There were no 1989 figures for the four newest cities.

1990-91 % change:

Number of Cities

Over 10%: 6

5.1% to 10.0%: 2

0.1% to 5.0%: 3

0.0% to -5.0%: 7

-5.1% to -10%: 5

-10% and below: 2