Research Brief: Retail Sales – August 2025

Recent spending may provide a window into months ahead. Core retail sales rose 4.4 percent on a year-over-year basis in July; however, consumers are beginning to pullback. When accounting for core CPI inflation, which rose 0.3 percent last month, core retail spending dipped 0.1 percent in July. Larger declines were registered across discretionary categories — electronics, building and gardening materials, and restaurants and bars — while necessity-based retailers — grocery and health and personal care stores — noted real-term gains…

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