Mercedes cardona

Sales of cars and gas helped push up March's retail sales figures, but there are also clear signs that shoppers have begun to spring for nonessentials such as clothes and housewares. The Commerce Department's retail and food services sales tally for March rose to $363.2 billion, up 7.6% from a year earlier.

The early arrivals of Easter and spring got shoppers out of hibernation in March. However, experts caution about reading too much into most retailers' strong sales numbers. The trends underlying double-digit sales gains show shoppers are still counting pennies.

An early Easter and a spring thaw helped spur shoppers into stores in March, and retailers now expect to post healthy gains for the month. The International Council of Shopping Centers said that sales are up 4.7% over the same time last year.

Tiffany's fourth-quarter earnings quadrupled, causing company executives to declare the end of the luxury market downturn.

The retailer was the last company to settle a suit with the Humane Society, which sued several stores, claiming their advertisements falsely described their fur coats and other fur-trimmed outerwear.

Expect more gifts and candy at this year's egg hunt. New surveys show Easter sales are off to a strong start and could lift March retail totals.

Retail sales rose unexpectedly in February, despite brutal weather throughout the country. Consumers continue to focus on price and value, although some analysts think frugal fatigue is beginning to set in.

It looks like shoppers have come out of hibernation. The spring sales season is off to a sprightly start, with the first week of March posting the best weekly sales gains in over two years -- 3.4% higher than the same time last year and 2.9% over the previous week.

Coach, the leather goods and apparel company, announced a deal with Estee Lauder Cos. to sell its Coach Beauty line of fragrances in department stores. The question is, will a shopper who can't spring for a $500 designer bag trade down to the same designer's perfume as a lower-priced indulgence?

Heavy snowstorms took out a chunk of February's sales, but retailers still managed to post stronger numbers. Shoppers appear to be coming back -- however slowly and carefully -- and spending again on non-essentials like clothes and housewares.

Merchants showed a 4% increase in comparable sales (for...