US retail sales misses expectations in April

Retail sales in the United States were flat in April, government data showed Wednesday, despite analyst expectations that they would continue growing and in a sign that consumer spending is cooling.

Overall sales held steady from March at a revised $705.2 billion, said the Commerce Department in a report. Analysts expected a 0.4 percent jump, according to Briefing.com.

From a year ago, retail sales were 3.0 percent higher.


While sales at gas stations were up 3.1 percent from March to April, the broader figure was bogged down by a slump in motor vehicle and parts dealers.

Economists have been expecting demand to cool this year as interest rates remain high, while households draw down on accumulated savings from the Covid-19 pandemic.

"The accelerated shift towards online retail has turbo-charged nonstore sales over the past few years, but the size of last month's jump is hard to explain and looks unsustainable," said analysts at Pantheon Macroeconomics in a recent note.

"We expect a softish retail sales report in April, supporting the idea that consumers are starting to tire," the report added.

But economists have warned that retail numbers are often revised heavily as well.

Generally, consumption growth is anticipated to slow further in the second quarter.