Mastercard SpendingPulse: Strong Consumer Spending Drives U.S. Retail Sales Growth* of 9.2% in January

• Digital Continues its Record-Setting Run, With E-Commerce Increasing 62.1% YOY

2021 kicked off with retail gains across nearly all sectors and all 50 U.S. states, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, which measures in-store and online retail sales across all forms of payment. This January, U.S. retail sales excluding automotive and gasoline increased 9.2% year-over-year, with online sales growing 62.1% compared to 2020. The momentum of a stronger-than-anticipated holiday season continued throughout the month, with consumer spending buoyed by an infusion of stimulus payments, particularly in the first two weeks of the year. 

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At a national level, key retail trends from January include:  

• Home is Where the Spending Still Is: Spending in and around the home remains a top consumer priority, with Furniture & Furnishings (+16.6%) posting its eighth straight month of solid gains.  Home categories, along with Grocery, have seen some of the biggest category lifts following stimulus payments.
• Consumers Start to Refresh their Wardrobes: Following months of working and schooling from home, we’re starting to see consumers invest in their wardrobe again—with Specialty Apparel online sales up +52.5% in January. Although the sector is still down (-4.3%), this is the smallest year-over-year decline experienced since the pandemic began impacting sales in March 2020.
• A Positive Sign for Department Stores: The Department Store sector experienced its first year-over-year increase in sales (+1.5%) since 2019, boosted by strong online sales (+27.9%).
• Gasoline Sales Reflect Restricted Mobility in January: No sector has been a clearer bellwether of consumers’ mobility this past year than Gasoline sales, with negative year-over-year growth since mid-March 2020. While the declines eased over the summer months, Covid-19 restrictions as well as winter weather led to a further deterioration in gasoline demand in January.

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