Retailers' Sales Growth Cooled Last Month

By Matt Grossman

Sales growth slowed for U.S. retailers in April, damped by a cooler increase in gasoline prices as the Iran conflict continued.

Retailers' sales grew by 0.5% last month to $757.1 billion, versus the 1.6% growth recorded in March, the Commerce Department said Thursday. The April numbers were in line with analysts' expectations.

The retail-sales numbers reflect total dollars spent, so recorded sales grew rapidly in March as people spent more for each gallon of gasoline. In April, gas-station prices weren't rising as fast, moderating overall sales growth for retailers.

Even beyond gasoline, though, there were some signs of cooler spending. Sales at furniture stores contracted by 2% from the previous month after rising by 2.6% in March. And at health and personal-care stores, sales were flat in April after rising by 1.1% a month earlier.

Consumers are the cornerstone of the American economy, and their spending has generally held up well so far this year despite rising prices and sluggish hiring in the labor market. When asked about the economy in surveys, people are reporting one of the grimmest economic moods on record. But so far, that hasn't translated into a dramatic downturn in their shopping.

Tuesday's consumer-inflation report detailed the scale of the price increases that shoppers are up against. Led by higher gasoline costs, prices rose by 3.8% in the 12 months through April, the highest inflation in three years.

Write to Matt Grossman at matt.grossman@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 14, 2026 09:04 ET (13:04 GMT)