Retail sales gained further ground in September. A 0.8 percent monthly rise was the best performance since June and large enough to boost yearly growth from minus 2.2 percent to minus 0.6 percent, well above the market consensus and also a 3-month high.

September's monthly advance came largely courtesy of the non-food sector where, excluding auto fuel, purchases climbed 1.1 percent after a 0.2 percent increase in August. Food, drink and tobacco saw a more modest 0.2 percent increase as did auto fuel.

Nonetheless, even after September's rise, overall volume sales last quarter were still 0.4 percent below their level in the previous quarter, matching that period's decline. Consequently, while the sector may be on the turn, currently retail sales remain of no help to GDP growth. Today's update leaves the Swiss RPI at minus 4 and the RPI-P at 15. Economic activity in general is performing much as expected but, without the surprising weakness of prices, would be running slightly ahead of forecasts.

Annuals sales growth is expected to be unchanged at minus 1.8 percent.

Retail sales measure the total receipts at stores that sell durable and nondurable goods. The survey comprises around 4,000 companies with the small-sized firms asked to provide monthly turnover data on a quarterly basis. Statistics are provided in both nominal and volume measures; the latter is the more important for financial markets. The headline figure is the annual growth in sales volumes adjusted for differences in trading days. Seasonally adjusted monthly changes are also provided. Details are limited in the first estimate but a more complete picture is provided with the following month's release.

Consumer spending accounts for a large portion of the economy, so if you know what consumers are up to, you will have a pretty good idea on where the economy is headed. Needless to say, that is a big advantage for investors. The pattern in consumer spending is often the foremost influence on stock and bond markets. For stocks, strong economic growth translates to healthy corporate profits and higher stock prices. For bonds, the focus is whether economic growth goes overboard and leads to inflation. Ideally, the economy walks that fine line between strong growth and excessive (inflationary) growth. Retail sales not only give you a sense of the big picture, but also the trends among different types of retailers. Perhaps auto sales are especially strong or apparel sales are showing exceptional weakness. These trends from the retail sales data can help you spot specific investment opportunities, without having to wait for a company's quarterly or annual report.