US Inflation and Retail Sales

US Inflation and Retail Sales

By Ben Casselman @bencasselman

"One big factor in inflation: We're still spending way more on stuff than before the pandemic. Retail sales up 1.7% in October, and more than 20% above prepandemic levels (not adjusted for inflation)."

"Compare that to restaurant spending, which was flat in October and is basically on its pre-Covid trend line. And restaurant sales have held up better than many in-person services, thanks to takeout."

"This isn't just about rising prices, either. Even in inflation-adjusted terms, retail sales are way above their prepandemic trend."

Activity - USA - Census Bureau - Retail Sales - Monthly

PricesActivity (old)United States
Maia Mindel

Written by

Maia Mindel

Macroeconomic analyst at Alphacast. Following inflation, activity, and trade.

Discontinued or no longer updated datasets. Check individual datasets to find if they have moved to a new dataset

Alphacast

Part of

Alphacast

Related insights