Recession-hit Italians spend less on fur coats

Retail sales in Italy dipped by 0.9 percent in July compared to a year earlier, official data showed on Thursday in worse-than-expected results, with Italians spending less on clothes and fur coats.Sales of electrical appliances, radios, televisions and recorders dropped 4.5 percent compared to July 2012, while clothing and fur coat sales fell 1.2 percent as the recession drags on. Food sales over the 12-month period were up 0.2 percent, Italy's national institute of statistics said. On a monthly comparison, retail sales in July decreased 0.3 percent -- following a 0.2-percent decline in June -- with food sales down 0.1 percent and sales of non-food products dropping 0.3 percent. Italy's economy has been contracting since mid-2011, with austerity measures and tax increases squeezing the budgets of many Italians