Customers wearing protective masks will leave a Uniqlo store in San Francisco, California on Wednesday, February 17, 2021.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Retail sales are expected to grow between 6.5% and 8.2% this year, representing sales of more than $ 4.33 trillion as the U.S. economy reopens and more and more people are receiving the Covid vaccine, the company said. National Retail Federation Wednesday.
A preliminary reading shows that retail sales were up 6.7% last year to $ 4.06 trillion, the industry’s leading trade group said. This was largely driven by an online growth of almost 22%.
Over the year, more Americans took to websites and apps to buy groceries, comfortable clothes, and household items. Figures exclude car dealerships, gas stations and restaurants.
“The trajectory of the economy is based on the effectiveness of the vaccine and its distribution,” NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said in a statement.
“Our main assumption is that the vaccination will be effective and allow for accelerated growth by the middle of the year,” he said. “The economy is expected to experience the fastest growth in more than two decades.”
Read the full release of NRF here.
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