Same Store Retail Sales Accelerate

Same store sales were up 3.5 percent year-on-year in the April 28 week, accelerating by 0.9 percentage points from the prior week to the fastest pace since March. Month-to-date sales versus the prior month were up 0.5 percent, matching the strongest reading since July 2017, but the full month year-on-year sales gain rose only slightly to 3.00 percent, just 0.2 percentage points above the slowest pace of the year. Despite the strength in the last week reported by retailers in Redbook's same store sample, it follows deceleration in the prior April weeks and still indicates slower growth results in ex-auto ex gas retail sales for the month.