Retail sales up a surprising 0.6% in June after a May pullback by consumers

By ANNE D INNOCENZIO Associated Press Business Writer WASHINGTON AP After an earlier pullback consumers picked up their spending in June despite anxiety over tariffs and the state of the U S financial sector Retail sales rose a better-than-expected in June after declining in May the Commerce Department explained Thursday Sales in April fell pulled down by a steep drop in auto sales after Americans ramped up their car-buying in March to get ahead of President Donald Trump s duty on imported cars and car parts Excluding autos and automotive parts sales rose according to the Commerce Department FILE Shoppers leave Macy s in Boston Nov AP Photo Michael Dwyer file There was broad-based strength across the board Clothing and accessories stores posted a sales increase while restaurants had a increase Online retailers saw a gain The retail sales analysis arrives amid a whipsaw frenzy of on and off again tariffs have that jolted businesses and households For businesses that has made it harder to manage supply and inventories Americans are focusing more on necessities when they do shop The latest cabinet assessment proved that inflation rose last month to its highest level since February as Trump s sweeping tariffs push up the costs of everything from groceries and clothes to furniture and appliances Related Articles Army veteran and US citizen arrested in California immigration raid warns it could happen to anyone Editorial Cut cut cut GBH At present in History July Disneyland s opening day Lucas Kerry stabs Biden in the back over frontier Puppies rescued from flood-stricken Texas arrive at Chicago shelter Consumer prices rose in June from a year earlier the Labor Department stated Tuesday up from an annual increase of in May On a monthly basis prices climbed from May to June after rising just the previous month Trump insists that the U S effectively has no inflation as he has attempted to pressure Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell into reducing short-term interest rates Yet the new inflation numbers make it more likely that the central bank will leave rates where they are Powell has explained that he wants to measure the economic impact of Trump s tariffs before reducing borrowing costs Americans have continued to spend but they appear to be growing cautious A big litmus test was Amazon s four-day Prime event along with competing retail sales from the likes of Walmart and Target that kicked off last week Adobe Digital Insights which tracks online sales announced that the sales events drove billion in online spending a increase compared with the same period last year But those buying prioritized lower priced essentials like dish soap and paper products over big-ticket purchases according to consumer input provider Numerator based on its analysis of Amazon Prime orders Deborah Weinswig founder and CEO of Coresight Research explained she s becoming more optimistic about the financial vitality of the consumer after the Amazon Prime events She commented inventories are at a healthy level and she didn t see these big fire sales People aren t buying things that they don t need she revealed I think it s a healthier retail milieu Retailers are now turning their attention to the back-to-school shopping season which is the second largest shopping period behind the winter holidays Coresight Research estimates that total U S back-to-school spending will increase by year compared with the year-ago period to billion And it predicts that shoppers will do a big chunk of their shopping before August to get ahead of tariffs Economists will also dissect quarterly financial reports next month from major retailers like Walmart Target and Macy s both for consumer behavior and to gauge how businesses are navigating a chaotic period of global transaction due to fluid U S policies Levi Strauss Co declared last week that it was cutting back on making styles that aren t selling and making targeted price increases as it moves production away from China due to tariffs