Federal Reserve research suggests consumer spending is the primary driver of the U.S. economy
Online retailers, sporting goods stores, and home and garden stores all reported higher sales
Vacancies and wages were flat, signalling a softening
Consumers continued to struggle under the weight of elevated interest rates
America’s consumers, the primary driver of economic growth, are still willing to spend, data show
Effects likely to be focused on weaker, low-rated issuers
Labour demand declined, and job vacancies were flat
Report comes amid upheaval in retail landscape
Retail sales rose below the pace that economists projected
However, StatsCan says its early estimate of the metric for April was a 0.7% increase