Upside surprise in US June retail sales

US retail sales surprised to the upside in June, driven by increased demand for electronics, gasoline and fashion.

According to the Department of Commerce, retail sales volumes grew at a 0.6% month-on-month pace to reach $621.3bn.

Economists had penciled in a drop of 0.5% versus May.

Excluding motor vehicles and parts, retail sales jumped by 1.3% following a 0.9% decline in the month before.

Sales of motor vehicles and parts fell by 2.0%, alongside a 3.6% fall in sales of furniture, a 1.6% decrease in those of building materials and a 1.7% retreat in those of sporting goods.

All other goods categories registered increases with sales of electronics rising by 3.3%, those at gasoline stations up 2.5%, fashion sales 2.6% stronger and those of miscellaneous store retailers up 3.4%.

Following Friday's release on retail sales, Barclays Research second quarter GDP tracker rose by three tenths of a percentage point to 9.2% in quarterly and annualised terms.