Banneker Inc. (BANI)

[BullsEye]

ECONOMIC REPORT
Retail sales rise 1%, first increase in seven months
Most sectors see healthy gain, stand in contrast to private-sector reports

Last update: 9:07 a.m. EST Feb. 12, 2009Comments: 121WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. retailers rang up their largest increase in sales in more than a year during January, rebounding strongly after a six-month string of sharp declines, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.
Retail sales rose 1% on a seasonally adjusted basis last month, marking the first increase since June as well as the largest percentage increase since November 2007. The gain was unexpected; economists surveyed by MarketWatch had been looking for a decline of 0.4%. See Economic Calendar.
Sales fell by 3% in December and by 2.4% in November, each revised down by three-tenths of a percentage point.
The figures are adjusted for seasonal factors but not for price changes. The data can be quite volatile.
Retail sales are down 9.7% in the past year, the government's data showed. Read the full report.
Rising gasoline prices boosted sales at gas stations by 2.6% but had only a small impact on the dollar volume of sales in January. Total retail sales excluding gasoline rose 0.9%.
The bullish government report is at odds with recent reports from retail chain stores and from automakers, which reported weak sales for January.
The government data, by contrast, showed most retail sectors enjoying increased sales in January compared with December.