WASHINGTON — U.S. retail sales rose modestly in August, marking the 11th consecutive month of growth, according to the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor, powered by Affinity Solutions.
Total retail sales, excluding automobile dealers and gasoline stations, rose 0.22% on a seasonally adjusted basis from July and increased 3.87% year over year.
Core retail sales, which also exclude restaurants, increased 0.17% month over month and 3.47% from a year earlier.
“Retail sales climbed steadily once again in August,” said Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation. “Supported by low unemployment and steady wage gains, households remained budget-conscious but took full advantage of back-to-school promotions to stretch their dollars. Retailers stayed committed to affordability, keeping everyday products accessible for American families.”
NRF cautioned that the August figures are not directly comparable to previously published Retail Monitor results because the organization is transitioning to a new methodology. The updated approach weights anonymized credit and debit card purchase data from Affinity Solutions to reflect the makeup of U.S. consumers and projects the results to align with U.S. Census Bureau retail sales totals.
Year-over-year comparisons are now also reported on a seasonally adjusted basis, consistent with the month-over-month figures.
The September release includes only total and core retail sales for August, as NRF completes its transition. The organization said its full Retail Monitor release, including enhanced sector details and dollar sales levels, will debut in October.
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