With the exception of drugstores, every sector--including discounters, department stores and apparel sellers--did better than expected, Thomson Reuters said. Of individual retailers, more than three-fourths outperformed expectations. "These results are very encouraging," Ken Perkins, president of research company Retail Metrics, told the newspaper. "Consumers seem to be coming out of hibernation."

Meanwhile, consumer confidence took a dive in February to its lowest point since April, according to The Conference Board. The New York business-research nonprofit said its Consumer Confidence Index plunged to 46 from January's 56.5, following several months of boosts, the Times reported. The economy is stable only when the reading surpasses 90.

The Conference Board said that consumers are in a generally sour mood, due partly to pessimism about job prospects and income worries-likely leading to curbed spending. "While other indicators are showing that the recession is over, to the consumer it still feels like we're still mired in the recession," Lynn Franco, director of the group's Consumer Research Center, told the newspaper. "This recovery has been driven more by business than by the consumer. The fact that we're not adding jobs but are still shedding them is doing very little to comfort consumers."

About 70% of economic activity in the country comes from consumer spending, making the confidence numbers a key element of economic health, the Times reported.