Retail sales rose 0.9% (month-over-month) in March, falling slightly short of the 1.1% gain expected by the market. February's decline was revised up ever so slightly to -0.5% (from -0.6% reported previously).
"Today's retail sales report delivered some good news, even if it wasn't quite as good as hoped. Following three consecutive monthly declines, consumers staged a comeback in March, with both headline and, more-importantly, core numbers posting gains." - said TD Economics
Even with March's uptick, the numbers do not look pretty on a quarterly basis, with total retail sales falling 1.3% (non-annualized) in the first quarter of the year. This marks the worst quarterly performance since the first quarter of 2009.
"While much of the decline is due to falling gasoline prices, even in real terms, consumer spending had a slower start to the year than we had anticipated. The rebound in March sets up the second quarter to look a lot better. Consumer spending should continue to rise in the months ahead, supported by robust real income growth, high consumer confidence and improved household balance sheets." - adds TD Economics
