US retail sales leapt by 1% in November, the Commerce Department said today in a report showing much stronger than expected consumer spending. Analysts had been expecting an increase of just 0.2%.
The report showed a 1.1% rise excluding the volatile car sector. This was also well ahead of forecasts.
Since consumer spending accounts for about two-thirds of US economic activity, the report suggests stronger fourth-quarter economic growth than many economists had expected.
November's sales strength could have been related to an early Thanksgiving holiday sparking early Christmas shopping trips. Electronics sales were up 4.6%.
The Commerce Department also revised its data to show better results than originally reported. The revision for October showed a 0.1% drop in spending instead of a 0.4% decline. The annual rate of retail sales growth in November was 5.6%.
The dollar moved slightly higher today after the robust read on US consumer spending encouraged buying back of the currency.
The euro hit an intra-day low of $1.32 after the data, and was last quoted at $1.3218, down almost 0.5% on the day. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 117.47 yen from about 117.14 yen before the retail sales figures and was last at 117.36 yen, up 0.5% on the day.
