CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor: Retail sales extend gains in January
Health and personal care stores were up nearly 6% year over year in January as overall retail sales continued to advance, NRF reported.
Health and personal care stores were up nearly 6% year over year in January as overall retail sales continued to advance, NRF reported.
Total sales were up 5.06% year over year for the first 11 months of the year and core sales were up 5.22%.
Report comes as NRF is forecasting holiday sales will increase between 3.7% and 4.2%.
“Consumer spending rose again in August, fueled by a still-stable consumer and a robust back-to-school shopping season,” NRF president and CEO Matthew Shay said.
Consumers responded to sales and bought ahead of tariffs.
The findings align closely with last week’s CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor, powered by Affinity Solutions.
Total retail sales, excluding automobiles and gasoline, were up 0.49% seasonally adjusted month over month and up 4.44% unadjusted year over year in May, according to the Retail Monitor.
“Spending rose again in April, driven largely by consumers continuing to pull purchases forward to stay ahead of tariffs that will inevitably lead to higher prices,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said.
“The pullback we’ve seen the past few months comes despite strong economic fundamentals. A major factor appears to be driven by the uncertainty caused by tariffs,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said.