(Bloomberg) — U.S. retail sales rebounded by more than forecast in February in a broad advance as consumers stepped up spending after a slow start to the year.
The value of retail purchases increased 0.6% after a slight decline in January, helped by resurgent auto sales. Excluding motor vehicles and gas, sales rose 0.4%, the most since August, according to Commerce Department data out Wednesday. The figures aren’t adjusted for inflation.
Ten out of 13 categories posted increases, including personal care, clothing and sporting goods and hobby stores. Motor vehicle sales rose 1.2%, the most since July, after severe winter weather crimped demand a month earlier. A pickup in receipts at gas stations likely reflected higher pump prices that accelerated in March because of the Iran war.
The retail figures indicate consumer demand was holding up ahead of the Iran war, helped by wage growth that is outpacing inflation and larger tax refunds. A Bank of America Institute analysis of internal card data suggested refunds helped bolster discretionary purchases by lower-income consumers in February.
“Overall, I’d say this is still a pretty resilient consumer,” said Veronica Clark, an economist at Citigroup Inc. “There’s not too much of a change in that picture.”
Still, the war in Middle East has driven gasoline prices above $4 a gallon, which risks causing shoppers to adjust their spending in other areas if the conflict drags on.
Spending at restaurants and bars, the only service-sector category in the retail report, rebounded 0.4% after declining in the prior month.
The retail sales data showed so-called control-group sales — which feed into the government’s calculation of goods spending for gross domestic product — increased 0.5%, the most since October. The measure excludes food services, auto dealers, building materials stores and gasoline stations.
“Auto sales and larger tax refunds supported a rebound in retail sales in February, with broad-based gains across categories. Even as we anticipate real consumer spending likely slowed in the first quarter of the year, February’s strong retail data will help moderate the downshift,” said Eliza Winger, economist.
Meanwhile, separate figures out Wednesday showed companies added 62,000 jobs in March after a similar increase a month earlier, indicating a steady labor market.
The ADP Research data precede the government’s March jobs report out Friday. Economists project payrolls rebounded last month after one of the largest declines since the pandemic.
–With assistance from Augusta Saraiva.
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
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