Following a somewhat sluggish holiday shopping season, retail sales picked up in January assisted by another round of federal relief checks. On a year-over-year basis, retail sales were up 7.4% in January versus up 2.5% in December. On a month-over-month basis, retail sales jumped 5.3% in January, following a 1.0% decline in December and a 1.3% decline in November. On an adjusted basis, sales increased in every major category in January, on a month-over-month basis. Excluding vehicles and gas, retail sales increased 6.1% month-over-month in January.