NEW YORK – The $600 stimulus checks got Americans shopping again. After three months of declines, retail sales soared a seasonally adjusted 5.3% in January from the month before, the U.S.
Commerce Department said Wednesday. It was the biggest increase since June and much larger than the 1% rise Wall Street analysts had expected.
The $600 stimulus checks, sent out at the very end of last year, has pushed people to buy new furniture, clothing and appliances.
Darryl Crum bought a new washing machine with his stimulus money, since his old one wasn’t spinning clothes well enough anymore.