Biden's roaring economy continues.....bashing Biden's leadership is THE crux of the GOP's strategy for 2022 and 2024....oh well


Retail sales were up for autos, dining out, while consumers pulled back on other goods purchases

Shoppers extended stimulus-induced spending in April, maintaining a level of retail sales from the prior month with increased expenditures on autos and dining out.

Retail sales—a measure of purchases at stores, at restaurants and online—overall were unchanged last month from March, the Commerce Department reported Friday. That kept spending at the same pace set by March’s upwardly revised 10.7% advance, which was influenced by government-stimulus money for most households.

“Flat sales going from March to April is still pretty strong. The level of sales is much higher than before the pandemic,” said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James Financial. “It’s still a sign that consumer spending is pretty healthy at this point.”

Sales were up 2.9% at auto and parts dealers, where shortages in available cars have driven up prices, and 3% at restaurants and bars, a positive sign for the hard-hit industry as the U.S. economy more fully opens.

The leisure and hospitality sector, including restaurants, added 331,000 jobs in April, accounting for much of the country’s job creation last month. Commerce’s Friday report showed sales at restaurants and bars in April were just 2% lower than their levels in February 2020, just before the pandemic took hold in the U.S.


https://www.wsj.com/articles/us-econ...ry-11620941526