COVID-19 Made August Retail Sales ‘Topsy-Turvy,’ Says NRF Economist

August sales through electronics and appliance stores were up 0.8% from July, down 3.4% from August 2019, reported the National Retail Federation Wednesday. Total retail sales in August were up 0.6% from July, 2.6% from a year earlier, said NRF. August online sales growth was flat compared with July, up 20.1% from August 2019. “August was topsy-turvy as COVID-19 brought a lot of shifts and uncertainty regarding back-to-school spending and other issues,” said Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz. “Retail spending habits have remained largely consistent and stable these past few months since stores began to reopen.”