Key Points:
- Retail sales, a measure of purchases at stores, restaurants and online, rose 3.0% in January from December after falling 1.1% last month.
- Consensus among economists was a 1.8% increase.
- January’s increase comes after two months of decline at the end of last year.
- Excluding autos, retail sales also rose by 2.3% over the month.
- Retail sales are up 6.1% from a year prior while consumer prices advanced 6.4% from a year earlier.
- The Right Facts will continue to monitor retail sales.