Retail sales weaker than expected in November

NEW YORK — Americans slowed their spending from October to November but continued shopping ahead of the holiday season, brushing off rising prices and shortages.

Retail sales rose to a seasonally adjusted 0.3% in November compared with the previous month when sales jumped 1.8%, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

That was a bit weaker than most economists had expected, yet consistent headlines about shortages may have pushed some to begin holiday shopping early, shifting sales from November to October.

There were also hints of a return to pre-pandemic behavior with Americans spending more on services that include going out to dinner, activities that had been under pressure due to the fear of infection.

While sales dipped at department stores and other retail spots, sales at restaurants rose 1% compared with October. That is the biggest gain since July.

Omicron emerged late in November, however, and the report Wednesday would not capture any of its negative effects.

Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Amherst Pierpont, said that the typical pattern in monthly retail activity before the pandemic alternated between weak and strong, and this also may be a shift back to more normal activity.

Still, the average U.S. consumer spent and additional $330 extra per person this November compared with the same stretch last year, according to Neil Saunders, Managing Director of GlobalData.

“Such a large uplift clearly signals that, regardless of economic or pandemic concerns, the consumer is determined to spend what it takes to have a jolly holiday season,” Saunders wrote.