FED Meeting Live | Dow Jones Futures | US Stock Market Live: Broad gain in U.S. retail sales shows resilient consumer spending
U.S. retail sales surged 1.2% in August to post their largest gain in five months, comfortably topping economic forecasts and highlighting broad-based consumer resilience despite rising gas prices. According to Census Bureau data released Wednesday, twelve of thirteen retail categories advanced, powered by strong back-to-school demand, a 2.6% bounce in online shopping, and higher receipts at gas stations and restaurants. The robust figures, along with a 1.4% jump in core control-group sales used to calculate gross domestic product, signal that steady job growth and stock gains continue to fuel household outlays even as sticky energy inflation weighs on real wages and keeps pressure on the Federal Reserve.
