Categories: Retirement Planning and InvestingU.S. Investing

U.S. Retail Sales Climbed More Than Forecast in December

U.S. Retail Sales Climbed More Than Forecast in December (Bloomberg)

Retail sales rose more than forecast in December as consumers enticed by year-end discounting stepped up holiday gift buying to give the world’s biggest economy a lift at the end of 2013. Purchases rose 0.2 percent after a 0.4 percent advance in November that was smaller than previously reported, Commerce Department figures showed today. The median forecast of 86 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a 0.1 percent gain. Excluding cars, demand jumped by the most in almost a year. Holiday-season deals probably helped retailers overcome the coldest December in four years. At the same time, improving confidence due to falling joblessness and further gains in the housing market likely will support household spending.The modest gains in retail sales should not spur a rush to buy retail stocks but the news helps to reassure investors that the shorter-than-usual holiday selling season in 2013 due to Thanksgiving falling on Nov. 28 did not hurt sales too much.

Paul Dykewicz

Paul Dykewicz is the editor of StockInvestor.com and the editorial director of Eagle Financial Publications in Washington, D.C. He writes and edits for the website, as well as edits investment newsletters, time-sensitive trading alerts and other reports published by Eagle. He also is an accomplished, award-winning journalist who has written for Dow Jones, USA Today and other publications, as well as served as business editor of a daily newspaper in Baltimore. In addition, Paul is the author of the inspirational book, "Holy Smokes! Golden Guidance from Notre Dame's Championship Chaplain." He received his MBA in finance from Johns Hopkins University, where he was a two-time president of the school's Finance Club. In addition, Paul has a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan and a master's degree in journalism from Michigan State University. Outside of work, Paul volunteers with a faith-based organization to assist the poor in Southeast Washington, D.C., to learn personal finance skills to lift themselves out of debt.