Retail sales bounced back in August, exceeding economists’ predictions, U.S. Census Bureau advance estimate data released Wednesday show.
Compared to July, retail sales increased 1.2% in August, better than economists’ forecast of a 0.7% improvement. Meanwhile, retail sales in July were revised up, shrinking the month-to-month decline from -0.6% to -0.5%.
August’s retail sales estimate is 6.0% higher than the August 2025 total. The monthly increase, which was the largest since March, suggests the government’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) estimate may be revised upward in future reports.
The gains were broad-based across business sectors. Sales by nonstore retailers were particularly strong, thanks to higher online purchases, as receipts increased 2.6% from July and 9.9% from August 2025.
And, even excluding gasoline station sales (+3.1%), retail sales rose 1.1% in August.
“American consumers are still opening their wallets and buying,” Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, wrote in a report published Wednesday.
