Retail sales rise a meager 0.1% in May from April as still high inflation curbs spending

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO
AP Retail Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Consumers barely increased spending in May from April as still high inflation and high interest rates curbed spending. Retail sales rose 0.1% in May, below the pace that economists projected, according to the Commerce Department. And April sales were revised downward _ a 0.2% decline from unchanged. Sales rose 0.6% in March and 0.9% in February. That comes after sales fell 1.1% in January, dragged down in part by inclement weather.