(CercleFinance.com) – Retail sales continued to progress solidly in December in the United States, at a faster pace than expected, reinforcing the scenario of still robust economic growth at the end of 2023.
The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that retail sales rose 0.6% last month, compared with economists’ expectations of just a 0.4% increase.
The November statistic was confirmed to show an already significant increase of 0.3%.
Over one year, the increase in December was 5.6%.
In detail, retail sales were supported, from one month to the next, by purchases of automobiles (+1.1%), clothing and accessories (+1.5%), but also by those made in department stores (+3%) during the Christmas period.
Excluding automobiles and fuels, retail sales increased by another 0.7%, as in November.
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