The NRF reports that the month could have been even stronger.
By Andrew Carlo
Despite two of the busiest holiday shopping day s being bumped to December, the National Retail Federation (NRF) reported that November was a solid month for shopping.
Total retail sales, excluding automobiles and gasoline, were up 0.15% seasonally adjusted month over month and up 2.35% unadjusted year over year in November, according to the latest CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor.
“November sales increased on top of a strong October and would have been even higher if Thanksgiving Sunday and Cyber Monday hadn’t fallen in December,” said
NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “Year-over-year gains were solid even as retail prices in many categories are lower this year, showing that consumers are buying more merchandise as the economy continues to grow. We remain confident in our holiday forecast.”
The latest findings compare to growth of just 0.74% month-over-month and 4.13% year-over-year in October.
The Retail Monitor calculation of core retail sales (excluding restaurants in addition to automobiles dealers and gasoline stations) was down 0.19% month over month in November but up 1.43% year over year. That compared with increases of 0.83% month-over-month and 4.59% year-over-year in October.
Total sales were up 2.15% year over year for the first 11 months of 2024 and core sales were up 2.33%. The numbers come as NRF is forecasting that retail sales during the November-December holiday season will grow between 2.5% and 3.5% over 2023.
Grocery and beverage stores were up 0.95% month-over-month seasonally adjusted and up 5.31% year-over-year unadjusted. Health and personal care stores were down 0.16% month-over-month seasonally adjusted but up 1.64% year-over-year unadjusted.