After a large fall in consumer spending in December and a tepid recovery in January, one economist described the then-current retail sales figures as “a fairly bleak read”. The latest sales figures for February are unlikely to fit the same description after a substantial month-on-month increase.
Total retail sales (seasonally adjusted) increased by 0.6% in February, after rising by 0.2% in January. On a year-on-year basis, sales grew by 3.0%, up from the previous month’s 2.1% annual rate.
The growth rate was double the +0.3% increase which was expected and bond yields and the local currency moved up as a result. Yields on 3 year and 10 year bonds both ended the day 2bps higher at 2.18% and 2.64% respectively while the local currency increased from around 76.85 U.S. cents to 77.15 U.S. cents.
Four of the six sales categories experienced solid growth rates. The other two categories also increased, but by less-robust amounts.