Retail Sales Continue Upward Trend
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Retail sales in the U.S. rose for a seventh consecutive month in April, as consumer spending continues to show strength as the spearhead for the economic recovery.
The Commerce Department said Friday that retail sales rose 0.4 percent to seasonally adjusted level of $366.4 billion last month, ahead of the economist estimate of a 0.2 percent increase. The gain slipped from the 2.1 percent increase in March which was skewed due to the early Easter holiday.
Excluding sales of automobiles, retail sales rose 0.4 percent in April, which was in line with expectations. Compared with the same month last year, retail sales grew 8.8 percent last month.
Consumer spending is a closely watched trend, as it accounts for 70 percent of the overall economic activity.
The rate of growth in consumer spending in the first three months of 2010 was the fastest in three years and economists see spending growing in the coming months if better news from the jobs market surfaces.
Adding to the upside, sales figures were revised up by two-tenths of a percentage point in both February and March.
Details of retail sales in April were mixed including a 6.9 percent increase in build materials, while sales at hardware stores and garden centers rose 6.9 percent as well. Motor vehicle sales increased 0.5 percent last month, following a 6.7 percent jump in March.
Sales at electronic and appliance stores fell 0.4 percent, while furniture store sales dropped 1.2 percent and sales at stores that offer products for leisure-time pursuits, including hobbies and sports fell 1.9 percent.
Health and personal-care sales increased 0.9 percent, but sales ate food and beverage stores dipped 0.5 percent.
The Commerce Department said Friday that retail sales rose 0.4 percent to seasonally adjusted level of $366.4 billion last month, ahead of the economist estimate of a 0.2 percent increase. The gain slipped from the 2.1 percent increase in March which was skewed due to the early Easter holiday.
Excluding sales of automobiles, retail sales rose 0.4 percent in April, which was in line with expectations. Compared with the same month last year, retail sales grew 8.8 percent last month.
Consumer spending is a closely watched trend, as it accounts for 70 percent of the overall economic activity.
The rate of growth in consumer spending in the first three months of 2010 was the fastest in three years and economists see spending growing in the coming months if better news from the jobs market surfaces.
Adding to the upside, sales figures were revised up by two-tenths of a percentage point in both February and March.
Details of retail sales in April were mixed including a 6.9 percent increase in build materials, while sales at hardware stores and garden centers rose 6.9 percent as well. Motor vehicle sales increased 0.5 percent last month, following a 6.7 percent jump in March.
Sales at electronic and appliance stores fell 0.4 percent, while furniture store sales dropped 1.2 percent and sales at stores that offer products for leisure-time pursuits, including hobbies and sports fell 1.9 percent.
Health and personal-care sales increased 0.9 percent, but sales ate food and beverage stores dipped 0.5 percent.
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