US retail sales declined more than expected in May, falling -0.9% month-on-month to USD 715.4B, well below the forecasted -0.6% mom drop.
The weakness was broad-based, with ex-auto sales falling -0.3% mom and ex-gasoline sales down -0.8% mom. Even the core control group—excluding autos and gasoline—registered a -0.1% mom decline, suggesting slowing momentum in discretionary consumption.
Despite a solid 4.5% yoy gain for the March–May period, today’s figures raise fresh doubts about the strength of US consumer spending heading into the summer.
