Consumer Behavior

US retail sales rebounded late summer

Generated by AI/Adobe Stock

September 24, 2026

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Retail sales in the U.S. came back big in August and illustrates the economy's resilience even though consumers are still a bit stressed about inflation.

Retail sales grew 1.2%, reflecting the biggest increase since March, according to data from the Commerce Department's Census Bureau. The sales data revealed consumers were spending more at restaurants and bars, according to a Reuter report.

"This reaffirms that the economy is more than capable of handling higher interest rates, providing the Fed plenty of scope to hike to get inflation under control," Bradley Saunders, North America economist at Capital Economics, told Reuters.

Industry watchers had expected retail sales would increase 0.8% after the 0.6% drop in July, which was the first decline in nine months.

Consumer Behavior