Taxable retail sales in Washington reached $109.1 billion in 2012, up 5.1 percent compared to 2011, the Washington State Department of Revenue reported Thursday.
Retail trade, a subset of all sales that excludes non-retail sectors such as construction and services, rose 5.3 percent to $50.5 billion. In Clark County, taxable retail sales increased to $4.5 billion, a 6.2 percent increase, while retail trade climbed 5.8 percent to $2.1 billion. For Vancouver, taxable retail sales increased 5.8 percent to $2.5 billion, while retail trade was up 4.9 percent to $1.1 billion.
Among major industries statewide, construction was up 7.6 percent to $16.7 billion, accommodations and food services increased 6.3 percent to $12.6 billion, motor vehicles and parts rose 11.6 percent to $11.4 billion, and general merchandise stores were up 2.5 percent to $10.3 billion.
