US retail sales unexpectedly fall in May

The US Commerce Department said that US retail sales fell 0.3% in May, the first decline in retail sales in five months, compared to 0.7% in April, instead of 0.9% as previously reported.

On an annualized basis, US retail sales rose 8.1% in May, retail sales excluding gasoline fell 0.7% in May, car dealerships declined 3.5% and online store sales fell 1.0% while sales at service stations rose 4.0%, driven record gasoline prices. The data showed that core retail sales that exclude cars, gasoline, building materials and food services, which closely align with the consumer spending component of GDP, were unchanged in May.