US retail sales jump 5.3% in January
Retail sales increased last month, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, marking their first increase since September.
Retail sales grew 5.3% in January from the prior month, beating out economists’ projections. Economists surveyed by Refinitiv expected sales to grow 1.1%. The Commerce Department also revised December’s data lower to a 1% decline from 0.7%.
Top retailers in the coming weeks will also report holiday sales and possibly give forecasts for how they expect the year to go. Walmart, the largest US retailer, reports earnings Thursday.
“It’s an uncertain time in retail. Walmart and other retailers did quite well in 2020. How they navigate the other side of this as we get back to normal and reopened and consumers go travel and go out to eat will be important,” said Michael Lasser, analyst at UBS.
The pandemic has weighed on the retail sector as a whole, but after some recovery in the summer Americans spent less at stores in the final stretch of 2020. Renewed coronavirus infections and tighter restrictions in the United States, as well as expiring unemployment benefits under the first stimulus package, took a toll on the sector.
Washington’s second $900 billion stimulus package has since extended various benefit programs. It included direct payments of up to $600 per adult and enhanced jobless benefits of $300 per week.
Economists expect President Joe Biden’s proposed $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, which includes additional direct checks for certain Americans, to help give spending a boost.
This is a developing story. It will be updated.
