so as we thought, the real reason reported retail sales were falling was due to falling prices in part thanks to the booming aussie dollar. ******************************************
From go, go to slow-mo ELI GREENBLAT April 21, 2010 HARVEY Norman shares fell more than 5 per cent yesterday after the company reported flat like-for-like sales for the latest quarter.
Strong furniture and bedding sales were just enough to counter a slide in computers, laptops and big-screen televisions caused by plummeting sticker prices for electronics.
Excess stock in overseas markets and the appreciating Australian dollar have forced down the price of items. Harvey Norman's range of flat-screen TVs, sold for $1299 a year ago, now cost $799.
The company reported like-for-like sales growth for the nine months to March 31 of 1.4 per cent, against a 1.2 per cent lift for the nine months to March 31 last year
Sales across its Australian, New Zealand and European stores totalled $4.64 billion for the nine months, up 2.2 per cent against the previous corresponding period.
Investors reacted badly to the news, with the shares closing down 19, or 5.3 per cent, at $3.38.
Chairman Gerry Harvey said that at the beginning of January he would have expected sales to be up 1 to 4 per cent for the six months to June. ''When you go through the categories, we are up furniture and bedding, about square in electrical and down a bit in computers. Unit sales are mostly up [in computers] but our dollars are down because all the prices have come down
