US may show record rise in monthly retail sales as people return to work

The US economy dropped into recession in February as the viral outbreak brought a record-long expansion to an abrupt end

US retail sales likely experienced a record rise in May as 2.5 million Americans went back to work, although any rebound will retrace only a fraction of the historic drops in March and April amid the coronavirus lockdowns.

The monthly report, due to be released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday, is expected to show overall receipts at U.S. retailers jumped 8.0 per cent last month, according to a Reuters poll of economists. That would exceed the previous record increase of 6.7 per cent in October 2001 as Americans resumed spending following what was then a record pullback in the aftermath