Coronavirus Economic Rebound? Retail Sales Up Significantly In May, Recovery Is Still A Long Way Off

As businesses across the nation slowly reopened, retail sales in the U.S. surged by 17.7% in May, beating the economists' expectations by a significant margin. This comes after record drops in recent months due to the global outbreak of COVID-19 and the lockdowns that followed, with sales dropping 14.7% in April and 8.2% in March.

Despite the encouraging numbers, sales remained 6% lower than May 2019 and economists still believe that a full recovery is a long way off.

“U.S. consumer sentiment rose this month as much of the country emerged from lockdown and employment picked up, translating into the 17.7% boost in retail activity in May,” said Dr. Kerstin Braun, President of Stenn Group, a global trade finance provider.

“Even so, a full rebound is well into the future, as fears of new outbreaks remain high and social distancing measures will limit full opening of shops and restaurants. Retail was already in a state of flux and the pandemic has sped the pace of structural change. Malls, concentrated with fast fashion and anchor department stores, were already in decline, ceding ground to online shopping and the sustainable, less-is-more sentiment of Millennial shoppers.”

Auto sales, which generally make up one-fifth of all retail spending, saw a 44% increase, with a 13% increase at gas stations pointing to Americans returning to the roads.

Clothing store sales jumped 188%, home furnishing by 90%, and all stores selling books, music, sporting goods, or other similar entertainment items went up by 88%.

President Trump celebrated the May numbers and predicted that it would mean good things for jobs and Wall Street.

Wall Street, meanwhile, saw a rally Tuesday after a Bloomberg report noted that the Trump administration had plans for nearly $1 trillion in infrastructure spending.