November Retail Sales Hit 11-Month Highs, Signal Strong Holiday Demand

U.S. retail sales exceeded expectations in November, highlighting consumers’ continued resilience in spending as the holiday season began.

Retail and food services sales rose to $724.6 billion in November, a 0.7% increase from October, according to seasonally adjusted advance estimates released Tuesday.

The monthly growth outpaced market expectations of a 0.5% rise, based on consensus estimates from TradingEconomics.

Auto Sales Rocket

On a year-over-year basis, retail sales grew by a remarkable 3.8%, the highest since December 2023, up from the upwardly revised 2.9% in October.

Excluding motor vehicles and parts, retail sales advanced by 0.2% month-over-month, holding steady from October but missing expectations of 0.4%. When stripping out gasoline, motor vehicles, and parts, sales also rose by 0.2% in November, steady from October and below the expected 0.4%.

Within spending categories, motor vehicle and parts recorded the largest monthly gain, with sales increasing 2.6% month-over-month and 6.5% year-over-year.

Other increases were found in nonstore retailers, up 1.8% month-over-month and sporting goods, hobby, musical instrument, and book stores, up 0.9% on the month.

On the other hand, miscellaneous store retailers registered the steepest monthly decline, with sales contracting 3.5%, followed by food services and drinking places, which saw sales fall 0.4%.

Market Reactions

The U.S. dollar index (DXY) which is tracked by the Invesco DB USD Index Bullish Fund ETF UUP strengthened by 0.2%, following the data.

Treasury yields ticked higher, with the 10-year benchmark up by 2 basis points to 4.42%.

Futures on major U.S. equity indices edged lower in Tuesday’s premarket trading, with S&P 500 contracts down 0.4% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 slipping 0.5%.

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