US retail sales climbed in June by more than forecast in a broad advance, suggesting resilient consumer spending despite decades-high inflation and raising the prospects of an even larger Federal Reserve interest-rate hike this month. The value of overall retail purchases increased 1%, after an upwardly revised 0.1% decline in May, Commerce Department figures showed Friday. The figures aren’t adjusted for inflation. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a 0.9% advance in overall retail sales from a month earlier. Follow the reaction in real time here on Bloomberg’s TOPLive blog While the ... (full story)

Despite collapsing consumer sentiment (and real wages slumping), analysts expected retail sales to rebound in June (except the almost omniscient BofA expects a negative print) after the 'surprise' drop in May driven by a drop in auto sales. It turns out BofA was wrong for once as headline retail sales rose 1.0% MoM (ahead of the +0.9% expected) - the best month since March... Finally, as a reminder, retail sales are notional, not 'real'. While adjusting the headline retail sales print for inflation (via CPI) is rough, it gives us some idea of the 'real' state of the American consumer's appetite for buying more stuff ... (full story)