Strong Back-to-School Shopping Eases Consumer Worries, BofA Says

According to Bank of America Corp, the back-to-school shopping season has kicked off strongly, offering some relief.

According to the National Retail Federation, spending on school items is expected to hit a record high of $111 billion, a 1% increase over last year.

Two years of strong back-to-school spending followed when families geared up with electronic devices to adopt remote learning The federalStimulus checks boosted spending.

Consumers are stocking up earlier this year as they look to lock in the best deals, according to economists. They said that the shift could be positive for consumer spending in July, but it could put downward pressure on spending in August.

Despite high inflation and the threat of a recession, US consumers are still resilient. According to a survey, shoppers are expected to spend a record amount due to higher prices and economic conditions.

Retailers are looking to boost sales during the back-to-school shopping period as demand for goods is waning. Competition is heating up with Amazon.com Inc.'s Prime Day sale.

Back-to-school bargain hunters may have a negative effect on retailers' revenue.

The Bank of America Institute said in the report that consumers shop earlier during the holiday season to get better deals and avoid potential delays. E- commerce is likely to play a big part. Between July 1 and August 6 the study found that 39% of clothing and 62% of electronics were spent online.