ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Mattress sales dipped into negative territory in July as the dollar value of bedding shipments fell 2.2% from the same month a year ago. Bedding unit sales posted a marginal 0.6% gain.
      The International Sleep Products Assn. reported the results, which reflect the performance of 20 leading bedding producers representing about 64% of total units and 73% of the dollar value of those unit shipments.
      The numbers confirmed what bedding producers and retailers had been reporting: That business in July was poor after the Independence Day sales excitement had died down.
      For the year to date, however, the industry remained solidly in positive territory. Bedding unit sales were up 9.6% through July and the dollar value of shipments was up 8.6%.
      In July, the average unit price of mattresses fell 5.1%, to $270.88. For the first seven months of 2010, the average unit price of mattresses was off 2.3% from the same period a year earlier, to $278.11.