People are still obsessed with buying stuff for their home post COVID-19 pandemic: BofA
Consumers may be venturing back outside post COVID-19 vaccination, but the love gained for their home during the pandemic hasn't abated.
At least as seen through the affinity for buying home-related merchandise to make things a bit comfier.
Average daily spending for the week ending May 8 at home improvement retailers increased 35.1% versus the comparable week of 2019 and 5.9% year-over-year, according to Bank of America's analysis of spending on its debit and credit cards. For housing-related services, average daily spending grew 46.1% for the week ending May 8 versus the same week of 2019. The sales gain marked a 37.7% pop from a year ago as COVID-19 restrictions have eased amid increased vaccinations, allowing contractors to safely enter one's home.
The sales strength extended into home furnishings, too. Average daily spending at home furnishings retailers for the week ending May 8 increased 35.3% compared to the similar week in 2019. Sales surged 73.7% from a year ago.
"We still feel good about the outlook for the year and just have so much demand right now... it's just off the charts," Sonos CEO Patrick Spence said on Yahoo Finance Live.
People investing in their homes during the pandemic remained a major tailwind for Sonos in its most recent quarter. The speaker maker said Wednesday that quarterly sales nearly doubled year-over-year. It warned that demand is so strong for its various lines of speakers that it continues to deal with out of stocks.
That said, there are signs emerging that robust home-related spending could cool down a bit in coming months as consumers become more mobile and stimulus checks are used up.
The Census Bureau said Friday retail sales were flat month-on-month in April, down from the revised 10.7% increase reported during the prior month. Sales in April fell compared to March in most categories, including drops at home furnishings retailers and building materials and supplies stores.
Economists say the wildcard is how consumers decide to spend the more than $5 trillion in savings they have amassed during the pandemic.
"The underlying trend over the next few months will be supported by the full reopening of the economy, which we expect will be followed by a long drawdown of some of the hundreds of billions of dollars of savings accumulated during the pandemic," said Pantheon Macroeconomics chief economist Ian Shepherdson after the latest read on retail sales.
Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.
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