Retail and food services sales were little changed in April, edging up by just 0.1% month-on-month (m/m). The pause in activity in April comes after an outsized gain in March, which was revised higher to 1.7% m/m (previously 1.5% m/m).
Motor vehicle sales and parts edged lower by 0.1% m/m, though that came from very elevated levels as households continued to purchase vehicles ahead of the tariffs. Sales at gasoline stations were also lower, declining for the third consecutive month (-0.5% m/m) due to lower prices at the pump. Meanwhile, building materials and equipment stores had another decent month of growth, with sales rising by 0.8% m/m.
Sales in the “control group”, which excludes the volatile components above (i.e., gasoline, autos and building supplies) declined by 0.2% m/m, well below expectations for a 0.3% gain.
Sales pulled back across most of the remaining categories, particularly in areas that saw large gains in March, including sporting goods & hobby stores (-2.5% m/m) and miscellaneous store retailers (-2.1% m/m). Furniture & home furnishings and electronics & appliance stores bucked the trend, with sales increasing by 0.3% m/m in each category. Online sales also edged modestly higher (+0.2%).
Sales at bars and restaurants remained strong, rising 1.2% m/m. This comes on the heels of an upwardly revised 3% m/m growth in March (previously reported as 1.9%).
Key Implications
Retail sales were little changed in April, but the easing in activity comes on the heels of a surge in March as consumers rushed to front-load purchases ahead of anticipated tariffs. There continued to be some evidence of this front-loading in April, with auto sales remaining at elevated levels, and consumers still purchasing large ticket items like furniture, electronics, and building materials. Households also showed a continued willingness to spend on discretionary items, as evidenced by another month of strong growth in bar and restaurant sales. While increased spending on goods—particularly cars – can be attributed to efforts to get ahead of potential tariff-related price hikes, robust spending on services like dining out suggests that consumer spending remains relatively resilient, despite downbeat sentiment.
The current divergence between forward-looking consumer sentiment and actual spending activity reflects both the front-loading of purchases and the still-resilient underlying economic fundamentals. The labor market continues to show strength, with job growth averaging 155,000 per month over the past three months, and wage growth remains positive. As for inflation, there have been no significant signs of price pressures stemming from tariffs so far. Corporate efforts to stockpile goods and limit the pass-through of costs to consumers appear to be containing price increases, at least in the short term. The temporary truce with China and the reduction in reciprocal tariffs should further ease pricing pressures in the near term. Looking through the recent volatility, we expect consumer spending to advance by around 1% in the second quarter as the boost from pre-emptive shopping fizzles out.
