INDUSTRY-BY-INDUSTRY OUTLOOK : The Year in Preview

California came several years late to the nation’s economic recovery party, but the state should be celebrating all through 1997.

Here is what key industries will be up to:

RETAILING: Nationally, retail sales will increase modestly. However, the Southland retail recovery that began in 1996 will continue. Sales growth in Southern California will outpace the nation as retailers benefit from an improved regional economy and long-suppressed demand for clothing and home furnishings.