The Commerce
Department announced on Thursday that sales at U.S. retailers rose by 0.4 per cent m-o-m in December 2024,
following an upwardly revised 0.8 per cent m-o-m jump (from +0.7 per cent m-o-m) in November 2024. This marked the fourth straight monthly
advance in retail sales, which, however, was the
weakest in the sequence.
Economists had anticipated
total sales would grow 0.6 per cent
m-o-m in December.
According to
the report, the December increase
in the total retail sales was
underpinned by gains in 10 of all 13
retail categories, led by miscellaneous store retailers (+4.3 per cent m-o-m), sporting
goods, hobby, musical instrument, and book stores (+2.6 per cent m-o-m), and furniture
and home furnishings stores (+2.3 per cent m-o-m). Meanwhile, building material
and garden equipment and supplies dealers (-2.0 per cent m-o-m), food services
and drinking places (-0.3 per cent m-o-m) and health and personal care stores (-0.2
per cent m-o-m) demonstrated declines
in retail sales in December.
Excluding auto,
retail sales also went up 0.4 per cent m-o-m in December after
an unrevised 0.2 per cent m-o-m gain in the previous month, matching
economists’ forecasts
of a 0.4 per cent m-o-m advance.
In y-o-y terms, U.S. retail sales climbed 3.9
per cent in December after an upwardly revised 4.1 per cent surge (from +3.8 per cent) in the previous
month.