September 2018 US retail sales highlights
- Prior was +0.1% (unrevised)
- Ex autos -0.1% vs +0.4% exp
- Prior ex autos +0.3% (revised to +0.2%)
- Ex autos and gas 0.0% vs +0.4% exp
- Prior ex autos and gas +0.2% (revised to +0.1%)
- Control group +0.5% vs +0.4% exp
- Prior control group +0.1% (revised to 0.0%)
- Full report
The headline is poor but if you strip out autos, gas and building supplies it was a strong month. Autos rose 0.8%, building materials rose 0.1% and gasoline station sales fell 0.8%.
Boosts came from furniture (+1.1%) and electronics/appliances (+0.9%) while health and personal care stores (-0.3%) were a drag. The drop in spending at bars and restaurants was the largest in two years in a 1.8% decline but that may have reflected the impact of Hurricane Florence.
Control group: