Mubasher: Retail sales in the United States rose more than expected in November, implying a powerful holiday shopping season.

The US retail sales edged up 0.8% month-on-month in November from 0.5% in October, according to data released by the Department of Commerce on Thursday.

Analysts were forecasting retail sales to level up 0.3% in November.

Retail sales rose 5.8% year-on-year last month, compared to the corresponding period of 2016.

By 1:57 pm GMT, the US dollar settled at $1.1822 against the euro.