The National Retail Federation says new data from the US Census Bureau shows growth in core retail sales in May 2025 despite a general dip in overall retail sales, linked to fluctuating tariffs on imported goods.
Sales in core retail including clothing, which exclude sales from automobile dealerships, gas stations, and restaurants, increased by 0.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis in May and a 3.9% increase on an unadjusted basis from last year.
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On a three-month moving average, core sales rose by 4.4% year over year and by 3.9% for the first five months of the year.
NRF chief economist Jack Kleinhenz said: “We’re continuing to see growth for core retail sales this year at about the same pace as last year. Despite a soft labour market, aggregate consumer spending has been supported by wage gains and an improvement in the stock market. Consumers are seeing their way through the uncertainty with trade policies, but I expect the inflation associated with tariffs to be felt later this year. Consumers remain very price sensitive, and those costs are likely to weigh heavily on consumer budgets.”
Despite the growth in core retail sales, overall retail sales in the US for the month of May declined by 0.9% when adjusted for seasonal variations from the previous month.
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By GlobalDataIt exhibited a 3.3% increase when not adjusted from the same period last year.
This contrasts with April’s figures, which showed a 0.1% monthly decrease and a 5% yearly increase.
Furthermore, the latest Global Port Tracker report issued jointly by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates last week, anticipated an increase in cargo imports at major US container ports in upcoming months, with retailers are preparing to take advantage of a temporary 90-day reduction in tariffs on goods imported from China.
