Retail Sales Blow Past Expectations in February as Consumers Bounce Back

American consumers came roaring back in February, with retail sales beating expectations across the board and snapping a two-month streak of disappointing readings.

Retail and food services sales rose 0.6 percent in February to a seasonally adjusted $738.4 billion, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. That handily topped the 0.4 percent gain economists had forecast. January’s decline was revised to 0.1 percent from the initially reported 0.2 percent drop.

From a year earlier, retail sales were up 3.7 percent.

The strength was not just in the headline. Sales excluding autos rose 0.5 percent, topping the 0.3 percent consensus. Stripping out…

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