Retail sales unexpectedly rose in June as the economy continues to recover from the pandemic.

The value of purchases rose 0.6% last month following a 1.7% drop in May, figures from the Commerce Department showed on Friday. Excluding autos, sales jumped a total of 1.3% in June.

Bloomberg reports that 9 of 13 retail categories posted increases in sales for the month of June, including electronics, appliances, clothing and restaurants.

“Many retailers are benefiting from increased traffic in stores as well as higher prices for the items on the shelves, a much-needed bounce back for many service sector businesses,” said Ben Ayers, an economist at Nationwide in Columbus, Ohio.

Receipts for appliances, electronics, food and beverage, and online retail have all made increases, whereas stores for sporting goods, hobbies, musical instruments, and books have all made slight decreases.

“With the economy reopening service spending has begun to pick up and could pull some spending away from goods towards some services that are not captured in the retail sales report,” said Kevin Cummins, chief U.S. economist at NatWest Markets in Stamford, Conn.

Things are expected to continue on an upward trend, as households accumulated at least $2.5 trillion in excess savings during the pandemic, which is expected to drive spending this year and beyond. Households are expected to also start receiving checks for the Child Tax Credits, giving them even more money to spend.

Retail