Retail sales dropped 0.6 percent in July — the biggest slide in more than a year — a sign that consumers may finally be losing patience with persistent inflation, according to a Census Bureau report released Friday.
Americans have been spending at solid rates this year, even as the Iran war has jacked up prices at the pump and in grocery stores. But many middle-class Americans are starting to look for ways to cut corners.
The new sales numbers, which are not adjusted for inflation, follow a weak hiring report in July, which showed U.S. employers shedding jobs for the first time since February.
“It’s not lights out for the economy, but new risks are emerging if the consumer pulls their support for economic growth,” Chris Rupkey, chief economist at Fwdbonds, a financial research firm, wrote in an email Friday.
The news isn’t all bad: July’s retail sales were up 5 percent from a year ago. And experts note that June included several big-spending events, such as the World Cup and Amazon Prime Day. So the month-over-month tumble may be less concerning than it appears.
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