April sees 15% increase in firearms sales checks over same month last year; 11th straight month over month increase

The April 2011 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 843,484 is an increase of 15.2 percent over the NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 731,955 in April 2010.

For comparison, the unadjusted April 2011 NICS figure of 1,339,673 is an increase of 9.2 percent over the unadjusted NICS figure of 1,226,760 in April 2010. This marks the eleventh straight month-over-month increase in NSSF-adjusted NICS figures.

The adjusted NICS data was derived by NSSF by subtracting out all NICS purpose code permit checks used by several states such as Kentucky, Iowa and Utah for CCW permit application checks as well as checks on active CCW permit databases.

Though not a direct correlation to firearms sales, the NSSF-adjusted NICS data provides a more accurate picture of current market conditions. In addition to other purposes, NICS is used to check transactions of firearms sales and transfers on new and used handguns and long guns.