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Retail sales rose 1.4% in March, after rising 0.2% in February, according to the Commerce Department. Retail sales fell 1.2% in January, hurt in part by cold weather that kept more Americans indoors, denting sales at car dealers and most other stores.

Excluding sales at dealers of autos and parts, sales only rose 0.5%.

Sales at dealers of autos and parts rose 5.3%, while electronics retailers had a 0.8% increase. Sporting goods retailers enjoyed a 2.4% gain. Grocery stores saw a 0.1% increase and clothing and accessories stores had a 0.4% increase. Online retailers posted a 0.1% gain and restaurants had a 1.8% increase. However, furniture and home furnishings stores posted a 0.7% decline.

鈥淭hese are simply blow out numbers on March retail sales where the rush is on like this is one gigantic clearance sale,鈥� said Christopher S. Rupkey, chief economist at FWDBonds LLC in a published note. 鈥淐onsumers are expecting sharply higher prices the next year and are clearing the store shelves and picking up bargains while they can. 鈥�

Analysts expect that sales will start falling off as the slew of tariffs increase costs for companies and many retailers are forced to raise prices, hurting shopper demand. Consumers鈥� confidence has already taken a hit. And a growing number of retailers and suppliers are halting shipments from China as well as pausing orders as they wait to see where the tariffs settle. In some cases, they are canceling orders.

The result of the trade wars so far: a baseline tariff on most countries of 10%, with imports from China getting taxed at a combined 145%. Goods from Canada and Mexico face tariffs of up to 25%, while imported autos, steel and aluminum are taxed at that same rate. China retaliated last week with a 125% tariff on U.S. goods.

Early this month, Trump announced sweeping and steep tariffs on nearly all trading partners. But after Trump鈥檚 U- turn last week that paused the new tariffs on about 60 nations for 90 days, average U.S. duties remain much higher than a couple of months ago.

Last Friday, the Trump administration announced tariff exemptions on electronics like smartphones and laptops but a few days later said they鈥檙e only a temporary reprieve.

Amid lots of uncertainty, U.S. consumer sentiment plunged in April, the fourth consecutive month of drops, in a seemingly sharp disapproval of Trump鈥檚 trade wars that have fueled anxiety over possible job cuts and rising inflation.

The preliminary reading of the University of Michigan鈥檚 closely watched consumer sentiment index, released Friday, fell 11% on a monthly basis to 50.8, the lowest since the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the past year, confidence has dropped 34%.

Analysts say that the big retailers will be able to navigate better than the smaller ones which don鈥檛 have the clout to absorb extra costs or pressure their suppliers. But it also depends on the type of goods they sell, particularly if they have goods sources from overseas.

Ashley Hetrick, principal and sourcing and supply chain segment leader at accounting firm BDO, noted that stores are taking a 鈥渨ait and see鈥� approach when it comes to ordering goods and are more cautious about ordering seasonal items because they have a shorter shelf life. She said that the cancelling of orders hasn't been widespread.

Walmart executives offered a dose of confidence last week that the retailer will keep delivering low prices as it navigates Trump鈥檚 escalating trade wars with China.

But the nation鈥檚 largest retailer, whose competitive prices became a strong magnet for inflation-weary shoppers, told analysts that it鈥檚 still vulnerable to the challenges and is monitoring the fluid tariff situation. The company told analysts that sales have been volatile.

鈥淲hile in the short term, we鈥檙e not immune to the effects, we are positioned to play offense,鈥� Walmart鈥檚 CEO Doug McMillon said at an investor meeting. 鈥淣othing about the current environment impacts our confidence in our business or our strategy.鈥�

Amazon鈥檚 CEO Andy Jassy said last week that the company has been doing everything it can to keep prices low for customers, including bringing in goods early ahead of the barrage of tariffs and negotiating with suppliers.

But Jassy told CNBC鈥檚 Andrew Sorkin Thursday that its network of third-party sellers will have to pass on the higher costs to sellers.

鈥淒epending on which country you鈥檙e in, you don鈥檛 have 50% extra margin that you can play with, so I think that they鈥檒l try and pass the cost on,鈥� Jassy said.

Jassy said that he hadn't seen a notable change in consumer behavior since Trump鈥檚 sweeping tariffs. And while he sees that some shoppers are stocking up ahead of price increases, the data is limited and he was not sure how broad-based that behavior is.

But according to Bloomreach, which tracks sales from more than 1,000 global brands and retailers overall, North American e-commerce revenue marginally increased 0.4% during the week of March 31 compared with the first week of March. But sales increased 6% between the week of March 24 and the week of March 31.

Online sales in apparel increased 44.8% during the week of March 31 compared with the first week of March, according to Bloomreach.