U.S. Retail Sales Rise 0.2% In January, Slightly More Than Expected
12 February 2016 - 8:17PM
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Partly reflecting an increase in auto sales, the Commerce
Department released a report on Friday showing that U.S. retail
sales rose by slightly more than anticipated in the month of
January.
The Commerce Department said retail sales climbed by 0.2 percent
in January compared to economist estimates for a 0.1 percent
uptick.
The report also showed that retail sales in December rose by an
upwardly revised 0.2 percent compared to the 0.1 percent drop
initially reported.
The modest increase in retail sales was partly due to growth in
sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, which climbed by 0.6
percent in January after rising by 0.5 percent in December.
Excluding auto sales, retail sales inched up by 0.1 percent in
January, matching the revised increase in December. Economists had
expected ex-auto sales to come in unchanged.
While the report showed notable increases in sales by
miscellaneous and non-store retailers, sales by gas stations
plunged by 3.1 percent amid lower gasoline prices.
Core retail sales, which exclude autos, gasoline, and building
materials, increased by 0.6 percent in January following a 0.3
percent decrease in December.
Paul Ashworth, Chief U.S. Economist at Capital Economics, said,
"All things considered, it appears that the net impact of the
record wet AND warm weather in December was negative, with a clear
rebound in January as the weather returned to more seasonal
norms."
"Note too that the strength of sales in January came despite the
massive snowstorm that blanketed much of the east coast for an
entire weekend," he added.
Ashworth predicted the report won't persuade the Federal Reserve
to raise interest rates next month in light of the tantrum by the
markets, but he said it is another sign economic growth is actually
accelerating.
The Commerce Department said total retail sales in January were
up by 3.4 percent compared to the same month a year ago, reflecting
an acceleration from the 2.4 percent annual growth seen in
December.
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