US retail sales declined last month, as Americans cut back their spending on clothes, appliances, and home and garden supplies. Sales dropped 0.2% in April, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, after a big 1.7% jump in March.
The March figure was revised upward from the originally reported figure of 1.6%. Car sales dropped 1.1% last month and sales at electronics and appliance stores dropped 1.3%.
Economists are having a difficult time gauging the mood of consumers this year. Retail sales have been on a seesaw pattern, rising at a healthy pace in January, then falling in February, followed by the big jump in March and now a drop in April… CNBC News
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