14.01.202614:35:00UTC+00U.S. Retail Sales Climb 0.6% In November, More Than Expected

Retail sales in the U.S. increased by more than expected in the month of November, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday.

The Commerce Department said retail sales climbed by 0.6 percent in November after edging down by a revised 0.1 percent in October.

Economists had expected retail sales to rise by 0.4 percent compared to the unchanged reading originally reported for the previous month.

"The strong gain in retail sales in November supports our forecast that this holiday season was a solid one for retailers, with the volume of holiday retail sales rising by the strongest since 2021," said Michael Pearce, Chief US Economist at Oxford Economics.

He added, "However, that rests on narrow foundations as spending is driven by high-income households spending part of their recent wealth gains."

The stronger than expected retail sales growth partly reflected a significant rebound in sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, which jumped by 1.0 percent in November after tumbling by 1.6 percent in October.

However, excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales still grew by 0.5 percent in November after inching up by 0.2 percent in October. Ex-auto sales were expected to increase by 0.4 percent.

The report showed notable increases in sales by sporting goods, hobby, musical instrument and book stores, miscellaneous store retailers, gas stations and building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers.

On the other hand, the Commerce Department said sales by department stores plunged by 2.9 percent in November after spiking by 4.9 percent in October.

Core retail sales, which exclude automobiles, gasoline, building materials and food services, increased by 0.4 percent in November after climbing by 0.6 percent in October.