RETAIL SALES CRUSH EXPECTATIONS - One Of The Biggest Fears For The Economy Just Went Away

One of the most anticipated numbers in awhile has beat expectations.

February retail sales were the first month that we were going to see the full impact of the end of the payroll tax holiday, and there was a lot of concern that the consumer was going to be sapped.

Michael Block of Phoenix Partners has the summary:

Nice Retail Sales number. Headline 1.1% vs. 0.5% consensus, ex Autos 1.0% vs. +0.5%, Control Group +0.4% vs. +0.2%. Prior month revised higher. What was strong? Auto parts, Building Materials, Gas Stations, Miscellaneous, Non store retailers. Weak - Electronics, Sporting Goods, Dept Stores, Restaurants. This is a big boost for the U.S. centric growth story. So much for earnings and comps already telling us what we need to know.

The full report is here. Here's a key chart:

It didn't happen.