US retail sales plunge 3pc in February: govt

WASHINGTON: US retail sales fell 3.0 percent in February, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday, as winter weather forced shoppers to defer purchases.

The seasonally adjusted data showed the decline from the prior month was much worse than expected and comes as businesses in the world's largest economy look to bounce back this year after struggling in 2020 as the Covid-19 pandemic hurt household spending.

The data showed broad declines across many categories last month including autos, furniture and electronics, and followed a 7.6 percent sales jump in January.