(Bloomberg) -- Job growth in the U.S. retail industry dipped into negative territory in July for the first time since the aftermath of the last recession, according to data from Friday's monthly Labor Department employment report. The industry has been struggling to adapt to a changing structure brought about by increased competition from the likes of Amazon and other online retailers, and the job losses accelerated in 2017 following a longer slowdown that had been underway for many years. Due to the sector's sheer size -- 10.8 percent of U.S. workers were still employed in retail in July -- the trend bears close scrutiny, as the employment reductions could weigh on consumer spending.
To contact the reporter on this story: Matthew Boesler in New York at mboesler1@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Murray at brmurray@bloomberg.net, Scott Lanman
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