Consumer
Retail Sales
An early estimate of monthly sales at US retailers and food services — a timely read on consumer demand.
Next Retail Sales release
8:30 a.m. ETin 5 days
Data for September 2026
After that
Source: Census economic indicator calendar ↗ · checked Oct 10, 2026. Agencies can reschedule; confirm before trading.
- Released by
- U.S. Census Bureau
- Frequency
- Monthly
- Release time
- 8:30 a.m. ET
- Typical timing
- Usually around the middle of the month, covering the prior month Official schedule ↗
What Retail Sales measures
The Advance Monthly Retail Trade Survey estimates sales at retail and food-service businesses. Figures are nominal (not adjusted for inflation) and seasonally adjusted.
The report breaks sales down by store type. The 'control group' excludes autos, gasoline, building materials and food services and feeds directly into the BEA's estimate of consumer spending in GDP.
Why traders watch it
Consumer spending is the largest component of US GDP. Retail sales is one of the earliest monthly signals of how that spending is holding up.
Because the data is nominal, strong sales can partly reflect higher prices rather than higher volumes — traders compare it with CPI for context.
What to look at in the release
| Headline m/m | Total retail and food services |
| Ex autos | Removes volatile vehicle sales |
| Control group | Feeds GDP consumption estimates |
| Revisions | Prior months are frequently revised |
How markets tend to interpret it
Relative to consensus expectations — not the absolute level.
Stronger / hotter than expected
Strong spending can lift growth expectations and, if it points to inflation pressure, yields and the dollar.
Weaker / cooler than expected
Weak spending can raise growth concerns and lower expected policy rates.
Context matters. Gasoline prices, auto sales and weather can distort the headline. The control group and revisions often matter more than the top-line number.
Historical data
% m/m · last 34 observations
Show recent data
| Date | Value (% m/m) |
|---|---|
| Aug 1, 2026 | 1.1 |
| Jul 1, 2026 | -0.5 |
| Jun 1, 2026 | 0.2 |
| May 1, 2026 | 1.0 |
| Apr 1, 2026 | 0.6 |
| Mar 1, 2026 | 1.7 |
| Feb 1, 2026 | 0.9 |
| Jan 1, 2026 | -0.6 |
| Dec 1, 2025 | 0.1 |
| Nov 1, 2025 | 0.7 |
| Oct 1, 2025 | -0.1 |
| Sep 1, 2025 | 0.2 |
Markets that watch Retail Sales
Each note explains the channel for that market; reactions are tendencies, not rules.
| Market | Why it can matter |
|---|---|
| DXY | A timely read on US consumer demand: surprises in the control group can shift US growth and rate expectations relative to the rest of the world, though the dollar's reaction is usually smaller than for jobs or inflation. |
| S&P 500 | Consumer spending is about two-thirds of US GDP, so retail sales — especially the control group — informs revenue expectations for the consumer-facing companies that make up a large share of the index. |
| Russell 2000 | Russell 2000 companies earn most of their revenue at home, so US consumer demand data tends to matter more to them than to multinational large caps. |
Retail Sales FAQ
What is the retail sales control group?
It is retail sales excluding autos, gasoline stations, building materials and food services. The BEA uses it in estimating consumer spending for GDP, so economists treat it as the cleanest signal in the report.
Is retail sales adjusted for inflation?
No. The headline figures are nominal. Comparing them with CPI gives a rough sense of whether spending is rising in real terms.