The 0.6% m/m rise in retail sales in August was a bit weaker than we had expected, but isn’t a huge concern given that sales are now nearly 2% above their pre-pandemic level. The expiry of the enhanced unemployment benefits at the start of the month did not have the catastrophic impact on spending predicted by some analysts and real consumption remains on course to rebound by close to 40% annualised in the third quarter.
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