U.S. News: Retail-Sales Fall Damps Hope That Rebound Is Near
WASHINGTON -- Retail sales tumbled in March as job losses and tight credit left consumers cautious and constrained, damping hopes for a rapid economic turnaround.</br></br>After some improvement earlier this year from a dismal autumn, retail sales in March fell 1.1% from February, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Credit turmoil continued to hit automobile sales especially hard, but the declines also came in most major categories, from appliances to furniture to clothing stores. Retail sales, a broad tally that also includes food services, were down more than 9% from the same month a year ago.</br></br>The decline signaled that consumer spending, which accounts for 70% of U.S. economic activity, probably won't bounce back quickly from the depths of the recession. Consumers, hit by a weak job market and steep declines in household wealth, remain worried that more tough times lie ahead.</br></br>The retail-sales report comes after weeks of hope that the recession was nearing its low point. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, in a speech Tuesday at Morehouse College in Atlanta, cited recent data on home sales, home building and consumer spending, including sales of new vehicles, as "tentative signs that the sharp decline in economic activity may be slowing." But the central-bank chief warned that "we will not have a sustainable recovery without a stabilization of our financial system and credit markets."</br></br>The economy continues to deteriorate at a rapid pace. Unemployment is rising, and consumers who have seen their wealth vanish are expected to keep socking away cash to replenish their savings.