Retail Has Biggest Monthly Sales Dip In 9 Years -- But Did Government Shutdown Skew The Numbers?

Retail got hit with a rough -- albeit controversial -- dose of news indicating that many merchants didn't have a jolly holiday season after all. Overall retail sales fell 1.2% in December, marking the industry'sbiggest monthly drop since September 2009, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. The department also said, excluding gasoline station sales, retail sales fell 0.9% in December.Economists polled by Reuters had forecast that retail sales would increase 0.2% during the month. The Decemb...