U.S. shoppers boosted their buying in October for the sixth month in a row, but the pace of growth slowed considerably amid rising coronavirus cases and uncertainty ahead of the U.S. presidential election.
Retail sales increased a seasonally adjusted 0.3% in October from a month earlier, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. That fell short of economists’ expectations for a 0.5% rise, and was well below the 1.6% gain in September.
Sales dipped in a number of key categories. Grocery-store sales dropped 0.4%, bar and restaurant receipts declined 0.1%, and both sporting goods and clothing sales fell 4.2%.
Sales increased 3.1% from the prior month at nonstore retailers, which accounts for online merchants. Retailers pushed an early start to the holiday shopping season in October with promotional events like Amazon.com Inc.’s Prime Day.
“It looks like retailers are working really hard to get an early start to the holiday season,” said Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Amherst Pierpont Securities.
