Costco sales strong in June; drops senior hours

Costco Wholesale Corp.’s winning streak continued in June, with the retailer reporting a 16.9% increase in sales and strong e-commerce growth. 

Costco’s sales rose to $18.92 billion from $16.18 billion for the five weeks ended July 4. 

Total comp sales rose 14.1%, with U.S. comps up 12.1%. E-commerce sales increased 20.8% Excluding the impacts from changes in gasoline prices and foreign exchange, Costco’s total comp sales rose 7.9%.

For the 44 weeks ended July 4, Costco reported net sales of $161.09 billion, up 18.1% from the year-ago period. The company’s online sales are up 53.4% so far this year. 

In other news, Costco is dropping the special hours it put in place for seniors as well members with disabilities or those who are immunocompromised amid the pandemic. The retailer said on its COVID-19 updates page that it plans to resume regular operating hours effective July 26. 

Costco currently operates 810 warehouses, including 559 in the United States and Puerto Rico, 105 in Canada, 39 in Mexico, 30 in Japan, 29 in the United Kingdom, 16 in Korea, 14 in Taiwan, 12 in Australia, three in Spain, and one each in Iceland, France, and China. Costco also operates e-commerce sites in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and Australia.

The retailer said that its Costco revealed in a release that sales in June, a period that ran until July 4, were $18.9 billion, up from $136.4 billion a year ago. 

Through 44 weeks of its fiscal year, Costco said that sales overall have gained 18.1%, to $161.1 billion from $136.4 billion a year ago. The wholesale-club company also continued to show gains in e-commerce, with online sales increasing 20.8% in the month and 53.4% so far this fiscal year.