U.S. Retail Sales Show Modest Rebound In February

After reporting a notable decrease by U.S. retail sales in the previous month, the Commerce Department released a report on Monday showing a modest rebound by retail sales in the month of February.

The Commerce Department said retail sales rose by 0.2 percent in February after tumbling by a revised 1.2 percent in January.

Economists had expected retail sales to climb by 0.7 percent compared to the 0.9 percent slump originally reported for the previous month.

Excluding a decrease in sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales increased by 0.3 percent in February after falling by 0.6 percent in January. Ex-auto sales were expected to rise by 0.5 percent.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released a separate report on Monday showing regional manufacturing activity dropped significantly in the month of March.

The New York Fed said its general business conditions index plunged to a negative 20.0 in March after jumping to a positive 5.7 in February, with a negative reading indicating contraction. Economists had expected the index to fall to a negative 1.9.

Looking ahead, the report said optimism about the outlook waned considerably for a second consecutive month, as the index for future business activity slumped to 12.7 in March after tumbling to 22.2 in February.

At 10 am ET, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on business inventories in the month of January. Business inventories are expected to rise by 0.3 percent in January after dipping by 0.2 percent in December.

The National Association of Home Builders is also due to release its report on homebuilder confidence in the month of March at 10 am ET. The housing market index is expected to inch up to 43 in March after slumping to 42 in February.