McDonald's Corp (MCD) today reported worldwide same-store sales growth of 4.8% for February, besting estimates. Domestic sales were up 0.6% -- performance that some commentators say was decent considering horrific weather in many areas. Sales were up 5.4% in Europe and 11.0% in other foreign lands. France, the UK, Japan, China and Australia were cited as strong spots.
While same-store sales growth of less than 1% in the United States hardly seems cause for believing that economic malaise has entirely melted. But this morning's report was of a piece with other retail numbers published in recent days showing some traction with the consumer. Indeed, Friday's editions of The Wall Street Journal included a story about better-than-expected retail performance across the spectrum in February -- with Retail Metrics showing same-store sales growth of 4.1% across the outlets it tracks:
The results, on the heels of similar activity in January, show how consumers, even if they aren't spending as much, are giving up the ultra-frugal habits they took on last year. Instead of waiting for deep discounts or buying items only when they need them, shoppers are back to buying a season ahead when prices are higher. They're also spreading around more of their carefully counted dollars to sellers of higher-priced goods, including luxury, which saw sales hit a wall last year. The turnaround has caught industry observers by surprise. More than three-quarters of the retailers who delivered February results Thursday did better than analysts had expected.
