U.S. retail sales growth slowed sharply last month, data from the Commerce Department indicated Wednesday, suggesting fading sentiment and surging inflation pressures are starting to take their toll on consumer spending.
February retail sales rose 0.3% from the previous month to a collective $658.1 billion, the Commerce Department said, just shy of the Street consensus forecast of a 0.4% advance. The January total, however, was revised firmly to a gain of 4.9%, the Commerce Department report showed, from the original estimate of a 3.8% surge.
Stripping out the auto sector, February retail sales were up 0.2%, the Commerce Department report noted, while stand-alone sales of cars and car parts rose 0.8%.
U.S. stock futures were little-changed following the data release, with futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average indicating a 365 point gain and the S&P 500 priced for a 50 point advance.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury note yields eased to 2.16% following the data release while the dollar index was marked 0.5% lower on the session at 98.615 against a basket of six global currencies.
U.S. inflation accelerated to the fastest pace in four decades again last month, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated Thursday, with the recent surge in oil and gas prices linked to Russia's war on Ukraine likely to keep rates elevated well into the second half of the year.
The headline consumer price index for the month of February was estimated to have risen 7.9% from last year, up from the 7.5% pace in January and the fastest rate since June of 1982, powered largely by energy, shelter and services costs. On a monthly basis, inflation was up 0.8%, the BLS said, with both tallies matching Wall Street forecasts.
U.S. consumer confidence hit a ten-year low this month, according to the University of Michigan's closely-tracked data set, amid the energy price surge triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, thanks in part to record-high gas prices, surging inflation and fading government stimulus.
