Media Quietly Reports that US Retail Sales Unexpectedly Stalled in April and By Some Measurements Declined
Retail Sales in April stalled according to the Commerce Department. When factoring out the fluctuations in food, gas, and autos, sales actually decreased.
Yahoo News reported on Friday:
American consumers spent less at stores last month. U.S. retail sales unexpectedly stalled in April as the boost from stimulus checks faded.
The Commerce Department said Friday sales were flat following a nearly 11% surge in March. Economists had expected sales would increase modestly.
Once you strip out the impact of volatile items like food, gas and autos, the so-called core retail sales dropped 1.5% from a rise of over 7% in March.
The weak sales data could raise anxiety about the economic recovery.
