U.S. retail sales fell a larger-than-expected 1.3 percent in February as auto sales plunged and consumers took a breather after spending big in January, a government report showed on Tuesday.
It was the first decline in sales since August and larger than the 0.8 percent drop forecast by Wall Street. But the Commerce Department revised up January sales to a whopping 2.9 percent rise from the originally reported 2.3 percent gain.
A separate report showed the U.S. current account deficit, the broadest measure of U.S. trade with the world, widened more than expected in the fourth quarter to a record $224.9 billion, pushing the 2005 gap to a record $804.9 billion.
