WASHINGTON (TNS) — Retail sales plunged in February for a third consecutive month as consumers remained hesitant to spend the money they’ve saved from low gasoline prices and bad weather added another obstacle for shoppers.
Sales decreased 0.6 percent last month, fueled by a major decline in auto purchases, the Commerce Department said.
The decline was an improvement over drops of 0.8 percent in January and 0.9 percent in December that were caused by a sharp drop in gas station sales.
As gas prices started to increase, economists expected retail sales to bounce back into positive territory in February. They forecast a 0.3 percent increase.
Sales at gas stations, which are included in the retail data, were up 1.5 percent in February, compared with the previous month. However, gasoline sales were down 24 percent compared with a year earlier.
