Retail sales were boosted in December, due in part to two busy holiday shopping days during Thanksgiving weekend falling in the final month of the year, the Sunday after Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday.

“Growth rebounded strongly in December from a misleadingly weaker November as the result of the final two days of the busy Thanksgiving holiday weekend being included in December’s data,” says National Retail Federation president and chief executive officer Matthew Shay. “Calendar issues aside, value-conscious customers showed enthusiasm for celebrating loved ones with the right gifts at the right price points for their budgets in December. Households are in good financial shape amid low unemployment, growing income and continued deceleration of inflation for goods. We remain confident in our 2024 holiday forecast and retail sales projection for the year.”

According to the NRF, total retail sales, excluding automobiles and gasoline, were up 1.74 percent seasonally adjusted month over month and up 7.24 percent unadjusted year over year in December. That compares with increases of 0.15 percent month over month and 2.35 percent year over year in November.

The NRF forecasted that 2024 retail sales for the full year and 2024 holiday retail sales during November and December would both increase between 2.5-3.5 percent over 2023. The forecasts are based on data from the US Census Bureau, and final results will be known when the Census Bureau releases December’s results on Thursday, January 16.