US Retail Sales Rebound Slightly in February but High Inflation Still Weighs on Spending

• US retail sales rebounded 0.6% in February after falling 1.1% in January • Increases seen at auto dealers and gas stations, but core retail sales unchanged • Consumer spending cooling due to high inflation and interest rates • Weekly jobless claims fell slightly to 209,000 last week • Atlanta Fed forecasts 2.5% GDP growth in Q1, down from 3.2% in Q4