US retail sales hold steady in June but slowdown expected

Retail sales in the US slipped less than analysts anticipated in June on a weaker performance in the auto and gas segments, government data showed on July 16.

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The slower consumption growth adds to recent data that shows the world's biggest economy is cooling gradually, although there is still some way to go.

A downward trend is likely to raise the central bank's confidence that it can soon begin cutting interest rates.

To ease demand and bring inflation back down sustainably, the Federal Reserve has rapidly lifted the benchmark lending rate and, in recent months, held it at a decades-high level.

In June, overall retail sales were US$704.3 billion (S$947.5 billion), virtually unchanged from May's figure, according to the Department of Commerce.