Retail Sales Fell in June

June was another slow month for U.S. retailing. Sales climbed 0.4 percent, short of the 0.8 percent gain that was the median estimate of 82 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

And, excluding auto sales and gasoline, sales fell 0.1 percent, the first drop in a year. Receipts at restaurants and bars decreased 1.2 percent in June, the most since February 2008. Sales dropped 2.2 percent at building materials outlets, the most since May 2012. Purchases at department stores fell 1 percent in June, a fifth consecutive decline.

The figures show households are replacing outdated cars and furnishing new homes, but cutting back on non-essentials.

“The consumer is going to remain a solid performer in the economy, though not a stellar one,” Russell Price, a senior economist at Ameriprise Financial Inc. (Detroit) told Bloomberg. “Looking forward, we’ll have a slow uptake from an exceptionally weak second quarter.”