Economic data just confirmed what anecdotal evidence had suggested: Consumers are rushing to make major purchases of cars, electronics and appliances in an attempt to get ahead of tariffs that could raise prices.

U.S. retail sales surged 1.4% in March from the previous month, the biggest jump in more than two years. Auto purchases led the advance with a 5.3% increase as buyers sought to dodge President Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on finished vehicles, which he unveiled late in the month. Categories like building materials, sporting goods and electronics that are often imported from China also rose.

The report from the Commerce Department, combined with comments from top bank executives this week about resilient consumers who are continuing to spend, backs up the idea that concern about tariffs helped spur a shopping frenzy that is boosting economic activity. Consumer sentiment is hovering near the lowest on record in data going back to the 1950s, but you wouldn’t know it if you visited a car dealership or Walmart recently.

“Consumers are playing a bit of beat-the-clock with tariffs,” Wells Fargo economists Tim Quinlan and Shannon Grein said in a note. “Once again, consumer spending is managing to avoid the gravitational pull of all the negative dynamics that might otherwise hold it back.”

The March data capture spending before Trump announced and subsequently paused high tariffs on nations across the world, and before he hiked levies on most Chinese goods to 145%. But the report offers insight on consumers’ mindset at a time of high uncertainty about future prices.

The rush to buy lifted U.S. auto sales in March to the highest rate in almost four years. Sales across Honda Motor Co.’s brands climbed 13%, while Ford Motor Co.’s retail business jumped 19%. Hyundai Motor Co. notched its second-best month ever in March, and the strength has carried into April.

The Atlanta Fed’s latest GDPNow forecast shows first-quarter real personal consumption rising at a solid 1.4% pace. Thanks to the strong retail sales report, real GDP is now forecast to drop 0.1%, excluding the impact of gold imports, a much improved estimate compared with past weeks.

Executives at Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, said last week that they’re confident the company can reach its financial targets this year despite turbulence from tariffs. The company sees net sales growing as much as 4% in 2025.

Economists must now try to figure out how long the boom in retail sales will last, as well as what comes next. If the March data was buoyed by a rush to buy now to avoid price hikes later, spending is bound to slow in coming months.

“With the economy set to cool sharply in the coming months as tariffs take their toll, price-sensitive consumers are poised to become more judicious with their spending,” said Lydia Boussour, a senior economist at EY.