Retail sales grew at their fastest pace in more than a year as a consumer spending rebound from the March 11 disasters helped the economy tide over the deepening export slump.

Retail sales rose 2.5 percent in December from a year earlier, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Friday, the biggest advance since August 2010 and exceeding the 2.1 percent median forecast in a survey of 17 economists.

Compared with November, sales climbed 0.3 percent.