Early Holiday Shopping Gave Boost to October Retail Sales: NRF
October retail sales -- excluding automobile dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants -- rose 10.8% from a year ago and 1.7% from September on early holiday shopping, said the National Retail Federation Tuesday. Electronics and appliance stores were up 3.8% month…
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over month and 17.4% year on year. “Despite significant challenges including supply chain issues, labor shortages, rising inflation and [the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s] impending employer vaccine mandate, retailers are continuing to safely serve consumers online and in stores,” said NRF CEO Matthew Shay. He urged consumers to continue to “shop early,” saying this holiday season will be “one for the record books.” October sales numbers show the retail industry’s “ongoing hardiness,” said NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz, noting the month included boosts from Halloween and early holiday shopping. November and December are the months consumers traditionally do most of their holiday shopping, “so much remains ahead of us,” Kleinhenz said, tempering comments with consumer concerns about rising prices and the pandemic. COVID-19 remains “a significant factor should there be an increase in coronavirus infections that could cause a pullback in spending,” he said. The NRF's full-year retail forecast is for growth of 10.5-13.5% vs. 2020 to $4.44 trillion-$4.56 trillion.