Retail sales in the United States rose a stronger-than-expected 1.1% in September following upwardly revised 1.2% (was 0.9%) and 0.7% (was 0.6%) gains in August and July, respectively. The auto component rose a solid, albeit largely expected, 1.3%. This increase was flagged earlier by a rise in unit sales to a 14.9-million annualized rate in September from 14.5 million in August.
Excluding the auto component, retail sales also rose 1.1% following revised 1.0% (was 0.8%) and 0.9% (was 0.8%) increases in August and July, respectively. Part of the nominal increase in September reflected a price-led 2.5% jump in gasoline station receipts that built on an outsized 6.1% rise in August; however, solid increases were also recorded in the food & beverages (1.2%), general merchandise stores (0.3%), and electronics & appliance stores (4.5%).
The jump in electronics sales may have reflected, in part, early sales of the iPhone 5, which was launched in the latter half of the month. So-called "control" sales (which exclude the motor vehicle, gasoline, and building materials components and enters directly into the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis’ quarterly consumer spending estimates) rose a solid 1.0% following a flat reading in August (previously was -0.2%) and a similar 1.0% (was 0.9%) jump in July.
