BY: MARSHALL BARTLETT
Senior Vice President / Portfolio Manager
In this morning’s announcement, Retail Sales increased 0.5% in May, slightly less than expected. Strength in non-store retailers, electronic stores, and sporting goods drove the increase. The Control Group, which excludes sales for food, autos, building materials and gas stations, also increased 0.5% in May, a bit more than expected. Furthermore, all Retail Sales figures from the previous month were revised markedly higher, improving from the flat to negative readings originally reported. A decent report, especially considering the revisions, which indicates consumers continue healthy spending despite weak inflation; a juxtaposition the Federal Reserve needs to consider for their interest rate policy in the months ahead. Following the report, bond yields moved higher, the U.S. dollar strengthened, and equity futures are lower heading into the market open.
This material is intended to be for informational purposes only and is intended for current or prospective clients of Argent Trust Company. This information is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, and its accuracy and completeness are not guaranteed. Information does not constitute a recommendation of any investment strategy, is not intended as investment advice and does not take into account all the circumstances of each investor. Forward‐looking assumptions are Argent Trust Company’s current estimates or expectations of future events or future results based on proprietary research and should not be construed as an estimate or promise of results that a portfolio may achieve. Actual results could differ materially from the results indicated by this information. Investments can go down as well as up. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
