Why Autos Will Crush Retail in 2012

The following video is part of our "Talking Stocks" series, in which Motley Fool analyst Austin Smith discusses trends across the investing universe.

In today's edition, Austin talks about the impressive retail sales numbers recently released by The Commerce Department. The growth is encouraging for the broad market as February saw the largest sales jump in five months. Austin was most impressed with the auto component of this performance. One of the major reasons for the growth in retail sales was warm weather, which isn't necessarily replicable from one year to the next. Although the economy is certainly showing true signs of organic strength, Austin likes the auto sector, particularly Ford (NYS: F) and General Motors (NYS: GM) more right now because of pent-up demand and continually aging vehicle fleets.

Amazon, one of the companies mentioned in this video was recently highlighted by our analysts in their recent report, "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich." The online retailer has literally redefined what it means to sell a consumer a simple product. We believe they will continue to crush the market on their way to retail dominance. You can learn about the other two companies we uncovered by clicking here now.

At the time thisarticle was published The Motley Fool owns shares of Ford Motor and Amazon.com.Motley Fool newsletter serviceshave recommended buying shares of Amazon.com, Ford Motor, and General Motors.Motley Fool newsletter serviceshave recommended creating a synthetic long position in Ford Motor. Try any of our Foolish newsletter servicesfree for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe thatconsidering a diverse range of insightsmakes us better investors. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.

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