Mastercard reported a 3.8% year-over-year increase in U.S. retail sales, excluding automotive, from November 1 through December 24, according to preliminary results from Mastercard SpendingPulse, which measures in-store and online retail sales.
Consumers pursued value in the holiday season, responding to promotions during the November and Black Friday shopping periods. The last five days of the holiday season accounted for 10% of all holiday spending, Mastercard pointed out.
Consumer demand for experiences, such as dining out, strengthened in the holiday season, with restaurant spending growth up 6.3% versus the 2023 period. However, sales in goods gained as well. Among the categories Mastercard singled out, jewelry led growth, up 4%, and electronics wasn’t far behind at 3.7%.
Online sales grew 6.7% year-over-year, with in-store sales up 2.9%, Mastercard stated. Some cities, such as Tampa, had particularly high online sales growth, up 10.6%. Other digital sales-leading locales during the period year over year were Phoenix, up 10%; Minneapolis, up 8.9%; Dallas, up 8.4%; Charlotte, NC, up 7.9%; Orlando, FL, up 7.8%; and Houston, up 7.6%.
“This holiday season, we saw consumers motivated by deals and retailers respond with promotions to meet the demand,” said Steve Sadove, senior advisor for Mastercard and former CEO and chairman of Saks. “The value-minded consumer showed up to shop at brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms, with retailers managing across both to capture attention throughout the season.
