US Retail Sales Fall Much More than Expected

Trading Economics-


Retail sales in the US declined 0.9% month-over-month in May 2025, following a downwardly revised 0.1% drop in April and worse than forecast of a 0.7% fall. It is the biggest decrease in four months, as consumers scaled back their purchases ahead of the expected tariffs. Sales at motor vehicle & parts dealers recorded the largest decline (-3.5%), followed by building material & garden equipment suppliers (-2.7%), gasoline stations (-2%), food services & drinking places (-0.9%), food & beverage stores (-0.7%), electronics & appliance stores (-0.6%) and health & personal care stores (-0.1%). In contrast, sales rose at miscellaneous store retailers (2.9%), sporting goods, hobby, musical instrument, & book stores (1.3%), furniture (1.2%), nonstore retailers (0.9%), and clothing (0.8%). Meanwhile, sales excluding food services, auto dealers, building materials stores and gasoline stations, which are used to calculate GDP, were up 0.4%, above forecasts of 0.3% and a 0.1% fall in April.