Retail sales unexpectedly showed a modest increase in the month of February, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Friday, with the unexpected growth partly due to a jump in sales by electronics and appliance stores.
The report showed that retail sales rose by 0.3 percent in February following a downwardly revised 0.1 percent increase in January. The sales growth came as a surprise to economists, who had expected sales to edge down by 0.2 percent compared to the 0.5 percent growth originally reported for the previous month.
Rob Carnell, chief international economist at ING, said, "February retail sales rose much more strongly than expected, especially given the assumption that sales would have been wiped out by severe winter weather."
"It seems you need more than a succession of freak blizzards to dampen the spending of the U.S. household sector, even if their confidence remains in the doldrums," he added.
Excluding a 2.0 percent drop in sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, sales increased by a more substantial 0.8 percent in February compared to a revised 0.5 percent increase in the previous month. Economists had expected ex-auto sales to edge up by 0.1 percent.
As mentioned above, the sales growth was partly due to a jump in sales by electronics and appliance stores, which rose by 3.7 percent in February following a 2.2 percent increase in January.
Sales by miscellaneous store retailers, food and beverage stores, sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores, and department stores also showed notable growth.
On the other hand, health and personal care stores saw a 0.7 percent decrease in sales in February following a 0.4 percent drop in January.
Carnell said, "This data stands somewhat at odds with the very weak consumer confidence figures we have had recently, though the downward revisions to the January spending figures suggest that we are still on for something like a 2.0% (saar) consumer spending figure in 1Q10."
"This is OK, but hardly stellar for a recovery year," he added.
Later Friday morning, Reuters and the University of Michigan are due to release their preliminary report on consumer sentiment in the month of March. The consumer sentiment index is expected to edge up to a reading of 74.0 from the 73.6 reported for February.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.