Economics
U.S. Retail Sales Post Surprise Monthly Drop to Cap Dismal Year
- Gain in value of retail sales last year smallest since 2009
- Seven of 13 major retail categories posted decline in December
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U.S. retail sales declined at the close of the holiday-shopping season, wrapping up a painful year for the nation’s merchants as the pandemic forced store closures and kept consumers at home.
Total retail receipts decreased 0.7% in December from the prior month after a downwardly revised 1.4% drop in November, Commerce Department figures showed Friday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for no change in December.