US consumers spent slightly more than expected in May after a strong surge in retail sales the previous month, official data showed today.
US retail and food services sales rose 0.5% in May, slowing from the 1.3% jump in April, the Commerce Department reported. Analysts had forecast a smaller 0.3% gain.
The retail sales data is a key gauge of consumer spending in the US, the main motor of the economy.
Retail sales were up 2.5% in May from a year ago.
Analysts said that now that the weather has returned to normal with the fading of El Nino, and with Easter distortions out of the data, the US consumer is back on track.
Petrol sales jumped 2.1%, partly reflecting increased prices. Online sales growth slowed to 1.3%, nearly half the pace of April, but sales at restaurants and bars, and clothing stores picked up.
Car sales increased 0.5%, marking a sharp downturn from March as the car industry cools from a 2015 boom.
Stripping out car sales, US retail sales rose 0.4% in May.
