Consumer Spending is Surprisingly Strong in the Final Month of the Second COVID Summer
09/16/2021
The emergence of the Delta variant in July caused consumers to tap the brakes on spending, but as the summer wore on, purchases apparently resumed. The advance retail sales report showed an unexpected +0.7% increase last month, well above the median Bloomberg forecast calling for a -0.7% decline. The miss was mitigated to a degree as the previously reported July number was revised downward from -1.1% to -1.8%.