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Softline Retailers to Continue Reaping Gains From AI Boom, UBS Says

US softline retailers should continue to benefit from the ongoing artificial intelligence boom, though recent consumer spending trends could weigh on the sector's performance, UBS Securities said Monday.The massive AI infrastructure buildout, which has fueled a rally in the stock market and growth of the world's biggest economy this year, should also help boost consumer demand for softgoods, UBS analysts, including Jay Sole, said in a note to clients.At the same time, softline companies' AI adoption is driving sales growth and making them cost efficient, they said. "We believe we are more bullish than the consensus is in both areas," the analysts wrote.Hyperscalers such as Amazon.com (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft (MSFT), and Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) are spending enormous sums to expand their AI infrastructure footprints globally amid growing demand for AI and cloud services.UBS continues to project a low-double-digit percentage growth in earnings per share this year for the "median industry stock" and deems Wall Street's 2026 forecasts to be "generally too low."However, the brokerage remains cautious on the sector given what appears to be muted consumer spending."August survey data show the current US consumer spending environment is similar (month over month) and this dampens our enthusiasm for softline stocks," the analysts said. "We believe the market needs to see the industry's sales growth rate accelerate in order to catalyze near-term stock buying."Last week, a survey by the University of Michigan showed that US consumer sentiment dropped in August amid concerns that inflation will continue to be high for the "foreseeable future." A separate survey by the Conference Board showed that consumer confidence fell this month amid a decline in the expectations index, with a "more pessimistic" outlook for business conditions and the labor market ahead."August survey results show moderate divergence of spending behavior between lower income and higher income consumers," UBS said Monday. "While lower-income consumers still report relatively resilient softgood spending intentions, most measures of financial well-being, confidence, economic optimism, and quality of life are weaker (versus) middle- and higher-income households."Price: $28.72, Change: $-0.13, Percent Change: -0.45%