Monthly increase is third in a row; August sales revised higher
By Jeffry Bartash, MarketWatch
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — U.S. retail sales in September grew for the third straight month as consumer bought more autos, electronics, appliances and assorted goods from Internet retailers.
Retail sales climbed 0.6%, the U.S Commerce Department reported Friday. What’s more, August sales were revised up to a 0.7% growth rate from an initial reading of 0.4%
Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales improved by 0.4% in September. August sales minus autos were also revised higher — up 1.0% from the 0.6% increase originally reported.
Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had forecast total sales to rise by 0.5% in September, or by 0.4% excluding the volatile automotive segment.
The news is likely to dampen concerns that the U.S. economy could tip into another recession after a prolonged bout of slow growth. Consumer spending is the largest contributor to the nation’s economy.
After the data were issued, U.S stock extended premarket gains.
Retail sales are closely watched by investors and economists for signs of whether the economy is growing or shrinking. Each month the government polls up to 5,000 firms that account for two-third of all U.S. retail sales.
Sales by category
The biggest increase for retailers took place in the auto segment, as sales jumped 1.6% in September.
Sales at electronics and appliances stores, meanwhile, also increased, up 0.6%.
Nonstore retailers, such as catalogs and online retailers like Amazon, saw a 1.0% gain in sales.
On the weaker side, sales at clothes stores fell 0.2% while department-store sales were flat.
Most other retail sectors reported modest gains. Sales at furniture and home stores rose 0.5%, as did sales at health and personal-care shops.
Sales increased 0.4% at gas stations and grocery stores.
