NEW YORK — Retail sales in April remained unchanged from March as inflation continued to hurt and high interest rates made borrowing more burdensome.
The number follows a revised 0.6% pace in March, according to Commerce Department data released Wednesday. It rose 0.9% in February. This comes after sales fell 1.1% in January, dragged down in part by bad weather.
Excluding gasoline prices and auto sales, retail sales fell 0.1%
Online sales fell 1.2%, while business in electronics stores increased 1.5%. Sales at home improvement stores fell 0.5%.
The data offers only a partial view of consumer spending because it excludes things like travel and accommodation. However, in restaurants, the only service category tracked in the monthly retail sales report, sales increased 0.2% compared to March.
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