U.S. consumer expenditure increased by the most in three years.
According to the U.S. Department of Commerce on the 21st (local time), March retail sales were tallied at $752.1 billion, up 1.7% from the previous month. This exceeds the growth rate (1.5%) projected by the market and is also the highest growth rate in the past three years. On Feb. in retail sales rose 0.7% from the previous month.
One of the main drivers lifting March retail sales was the rise in gasoline prices. But consumption also increased broadly in categories excluding gasoline.
The "control group" indicator (excluding autos, gasoline, building materials and food services), which economists watch to gauge underlying consumption by stripping out volatile components, also rose 0.7% from the previous month.
This shows that the numbers rose not simply because gas prices went up, but because overall consumer purchasing power is holding up.
The latest retail sales figures are raising expectations for first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP), which will be released next week.