More signs of a recovery taking hold in the US

WASHINGTON: Retail sales in the US probably rose in March and housing demand stabilised, bolstering the world's largest economy, analysts said before reports this week.

The 0.3% rise in retail purchases would follow a 1.1% increase in February that was the biggest in five months, according to the median forecast of 71 economists surveyed by Bloomberg ahead of Commerce Department figures on Monday.

Builders broke ground on more houses in March, sales of previously-owned homes climbed and industrial production picked up, other data may show.

Better-than-estimated sales last month at chains like Gap and Target signal Americans have enough income to sustain spending and withstand higher gasoline prices. To help foster bigger gains in employment, Federal Reserve officials are sticking to a goal of keeping borrowing costs low through 2014. "Retail sales seem to be holding up well," said Carl Riccadonna, a senior US economist at Deutsche Bank Securities in New York. "It's sending an important signal that gasoline prices are not yet biting into spending. We're seeing ongoing income growth."

The smaller gain in retail sales in March from the previous month is probably due mostly to a slowdown in auto purchases.