Retail spending dropped .5% in June, after a 1% dip in May. But the reality is retail sales would’ve seen a slight increase if not for stagnant totals in the auto and gas industries.

A lack of consumer confidence combined with high unemployment has handicapped the auto industry. Auto sales were down more than 2% in June — a negative trend that may not reverse itself until unemployment rates and consumer confidence start to rebound.

A drop in prices accounted for a 2% dip in the gas industry.

Meanwhile, other retail segments enjoyed a slight boost. Department store sales were up 1.1%, and general merchandise sales rose .2% (after a 1% drop in May).

All told, if not for gas and auto, retail sales would have risen .1% in June.

Source: “U.S. Retail Sales Decline Again in June,” New York Times (via the Associated Press), 7/13/10.

The projections, based largely on statistics from a national study conducted by the Monthly Labor Review in 2007, predict these 10 industries will offer the most potential in terms of jobs and salary over the next six years (also listed is the estimated annual rate of expansion):

1. Management and technical consulting services: 5.9%
2. Individual and family services: 5.7%
3. Home health care services: 4.5%
4. Securities, commodities & financial investments: 3.9%
5. Facility sevices: 3.8%
6. Residential care: 3.3%
7. Independent artists, writers, and performers: 3.3%
8. Computer systems design: 3.3%
9. Museum and historical sites: 3.1%
10. Day care services: 2.9%

It may be worth considering how you can tap into these markets or target prospects in related industries. Meanwhile, here are the 10 industries that are experiencing the most rapid decline:

1. Sewing manufacturing: -8.7%
2. Footwear manufacturing: -7.3%
3. Federal enterprises (except the USPS): -5.2%
4. Knitting apparel factories: -5.1%
5. Textile and fabrics mills: -5.0%
6. Leather and hide manufacturing: -4.9%
7. Apparel manufacturing : -4.1%
8. Tobacco manufacturing: -4.0%
9. Computer manufacturing: -4.0%
10. Iron and steel manufacturing: -3.9

The message is clear: As automated processes (and cheaper foreign labor) make it easier for companies to cut down on manpower, a lot of traditional American manufacturers are on the decline. Now may be the time to determine how your organization can adjust to those changes, and maintain (or increase) its market share.

Click here for the U.S. Department of Labor’s full list of “Industries with the fastest growing and most rapidly declining salary employment”