Retail sales bounced back strongly in October as the economy remained in good shape and consumers moved past concerns about a port strike and other issues that slowed September’s sales.
WASHINGTON, November 12, 2024 – Retail sales bounced back strongly in October as the economy remained in good shape and consumers moved past concerns about a port strike and other issues that slowed September’s sales, according to the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor, powered by Affinity Solutions, released today by the National Retail Federation.
“Healthy spending resumed in October as consumers continued to benefit from this year’s job gains and higher wages,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “Inflation is mostly limited to services at this point and prices for some retail goods are actually falling. October sales have set the stage for a good start to the holiday shopping season.”
Total retail sales, excluding automobiles and gasoline, were up 0.74% seasonally adjusted month over month and up 4.13% unadjusted year over year in October, according to the Retail Monitor. That compared with a decrease of 0.32% month over month and an increase of 0.55% year over year in September, when shoppers showed caution due to geopolitical tensions, a strike at East and Gulf Coast ports and the end of student loan relief programs.
The Retail Monitor calculation of core retail sales (excluding restaurants in addition to automobiles dealers and gasoline stations) was up 0.83% month over month in October and up 4.59% year over year. That compared with a decrease of 0.28% month over month and an increase of 0.94% year over year in September.
The year-over-year increase for total sales was the largest since 4.24% in November 2023 while the year-over-year increase for core sales was the largest since 4.76% in August 2023. Total sales were up 2.13% year over year for the first 10 months of 2024 and core sales were up 2.42%.
Unlike survey-based numbers collected by the Census Bureau, the Retail Monitor uses actual, anonymized credit and debit card purchase data compiled by Affinity Solutions and does not need to be revised monthly or annually.
October sales were up in seven out of nine retail categories on a yearly basis, led by online sales, clothing and accessories stores and health and personal care stores. Sales were also up in seven categories on a monthly basis. Specifics from key sectors include:
- Online and other non-store sales were up 1.84% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 19.38% year over year unadjusted.
- Clothing and accessories stores were down 0.57% month over month seasonally adjusted but up 8.56% year over year unadjusted.
- Health and personal care stores were up 1.45% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 8.35% year over year unadjusted.
- General merchandise stores were up 0.05% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 5.51% year over year unadjusted.
- Grocery and beverage stores were up 0.87% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 3.76% year over year unadjusted.
- Building and garden supply stores were up 1.69% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 3.12% year over year unadjusted.
- Furniture and home furnishings stores were up 0.58% month over month seasonally adjusted and up 1.87% year over year unadjusted.
- Electronics and appliance stores were down 0.81% month over month seasonally adjusted and down 0.64% year over year unadjusted.
- Sporting goods, hobby, music and book stores were up 2.7% month over month seasonally adjusted but down 1.23% year over year unadjusted.
To learn more, visit nrf.com/nrf/cnbc-retail-monitor.
As the leading authority and voice for the retail industry, NRF provides data on retail sales each month and also forecasts annual retail sales and spending for key periods such as the holiday season each year.
About NRF
The National Retail Federation passionately advocates for the people, brands, policies and ideas that help retail succeed. From its headquarters in Washington, D.C., NRF empowers the industry that powers the economy. Retail is the nation’s largest private-sector employer, contributing $5.3 trillion to annual GDP and supporting more than one in four U.S. jobs — 55 million working Americans. For over a century, NRF has been a voice for every retailer and every retail job, educating, inspiring and communicating the powerful impact retail has on local communities and global economies. nrf.com
About CNBC
CNBC is the recognized world leader in business news, providing real-time financial market coverage and business content consumed by more than half a billion people per month across all platforms. The network’s 15 live hours a day of news programming in North America (weekdays from 5:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET) is produced at CNBC’s global headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., and includes reports from CNBC News bureaus worldwide. CNBC at night features a mix of reality programming, CNBC’s highly successful series produced exclusively for CNBC and a number of distinctive in-house documentaries.
CNBC also offers content through its vast portfolio of digital products such as: CNBC.com, which provides financial market news and information to CNBC’s investor audience; CNBC Make It, a digital destination focused on making you smarter about how you earn, save and spend your money; CNBC PRO, a premium service that provides in-depth access to Wall Street; a suite of CNBC mobile apps for iOS and Android devices; Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple Siri voice interfaces; and streaming services including Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV and Samsung Smart TVs. To learn more, visit cnbc.com/digital-products. Members of the media can receive more information about CNBC and its programming on the NBCUniversal Media Village Web site at nbcumv.com/programming/cnbc. For more information about NBCUniversal, please visit NBCUniversal.com.
About Affinity Solutions
Affinity Solutions (Affinity) is the leading consumer purchase insights company. We provide a complete view of U.S. and U.K. consumer spending, across and between brands, via exclusive access to fully permissioned data from over 140 million debit and credit cards. This data is transformed into privacy-compliant, actionable intelligence for marketers, consultancies, and financial services companies to drive strategic growth and lasting customer relationships. Visit us at www.affinitysolutions.com to discover how we’re shaping the future of consumer purchase insights.
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MEDIA CONTACTS
NRF: J. Craig Shearman | press@nrf.com
CNBC: Melissa Castro | melissa.castro@nbcuni.com
Affinity Solutions: Kathleen Siddell | ksiddell@affinitysolutions.com
