NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

The government shutdown, now in its third week, is affecting the retail industry in various ways. Small businesses have been cut off from important loan programs. And today, the U.S. Commerce Department failed to release its retail sales numbers for September.

Retail Dive uses these numbers – in their year-on-year, unadjusted form – for our monthly retail sales tracker, which our readers have come to depend on. Rest assured, if and when the government releases these numbers, we will update the tracker.

In the meantime, we covered September’s results using information from various researchers. It’s not ideal given that some reports, including from the National Retail Federation, leverage credit and debit card spending. Data from the U.S. government, however, tends to be more reliable, according to analysts.

We will also be covering the broader consumer landscape as we enter the all-important holiday season. Thank you for your readership.