US retail apparel prices fell a seasonally adjusted 0.9 per cent in June after being unchanged in May, but were up 0.6 per cent from a year earlier. Women’s wear prices fell 1.2 per cent last month, led by declines of 3.5 per cent in dresses and 3.4 per cent in the underwear, nightwear, sportswear and accessories category, balanced somewhat by price increases of 0.5 per cent in outerwear and 0.1 per cent in suits and separates.

Men’s wear prices inched up 0.1 per cent in the month, with gains of 0.5 per cent in shirts and sweaters, 0.3 per cent in furnishings and 0.2 per cent in pants and shorts, while prices for suits, sport coats and outerwear were off 0.3 per cent.

The falloff runs counter to increases in raw materials prices, which have been on the rise, and is likely indicative of retail trends, including the strength of off-price merchants, a shift to summer goods from spring merchandise, and a softness in overall pricing power in the highly competitive sector.

Raw material and apparel prices are expected to spike in the coming months due to the import tariffs already imposed or set to be imposed this fall on textiles and some clothing from China, the largest supplier of apparel to the US.