Taxable retail sales as well as retail trade fell in Spokane last year, unlike most other metro areas, including its plucky offspring, Spokane Valley.

Taxable sales totaled $3.6 billion in Spokane in 2011, a 1.2 percent dip over 2010, the state Department of Revenue said today.

And retail trade, a component of all taxable sales that includes retailers but excludes other industries, was $1.8 billion in Spokane last year. That's a decline of 2.3 percent over 2010.

The numbers were better elsewhere. Statewide, taxable sales increased 3 percent, and were up 4.2 percent in King County, 5.7 percent in Vancouver and 6.6 percent in Seattle. Sales did dip 0.6 percent in Tacoma and 1 percent in Pierce County.

And despite the slowdown in Spokane, taxable retail sales were up 2.2 percent throughout Spokane County, to $6.9 billion. The retail trade in the county rose 1.4 percent last year, to $3.4 billion.

And that brings us to Spokane Valley: retail sales in 2011 were $1.7 billion, or 5.9 percent higher than the year before. Retail trade there was up 5.3 percent year over year.

In other local cities, taxable retail sales in 2011 were:

Airway Heights: up 2.3 percent

Cheney: up 20 percent

Deer Park: down 9 percent

Liberty Lake: up 10 percent

Medical Lake: up 17 percent

Millwood: up 3 percent

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