U.S. retail sales in January fell 0.8% from the previous month, far below market expectations.
Trend in consumer spending, which has been supporting the American economy, is likely to be the focus going forward. Retail sales for January were $700.291 billion, or approximately 105 trillion yen in Japanese yen. In the United States, consumer spending has remained strong even under high interest rates, but is the drop in retailSales in January a temporary thing or a downward trend? This islikely to become a focal point in predicting the future of theAmerican economy and the monetary policy of the Federal Reserve Board.