Retail sales rose a seasonally adjusted 0.6 percent in March following a revised decline of 1.3 percent in February, helped by a 5.1 percent increase in purchases of information and communication equipment. Household equipment, textiles, and DIY saw an increase of 1.2 percent on the month.

At the same time, sales at stalls and markets, and via mail order houses fell 1.3 percent in March after four consecutive monthly increases.

Compared to a year ago, sales were up 2.2 percent in March, rising for the tenth consecutive month, with the biggest gain coming in information and communication equipment (up 23.3 percent). That's the largest increase since April 2021.

March is the last month before the full effects of US tariffs come into play, and today's results show that consumers, at least in some sectors, may have accelerated some major purchases.

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.