Shifting Consumer Spending Hits Retail

Consumer spending is up, but maybe not in the way a fan of a growing economy might like. “Inflation is currently driving most of the growth in retail with overall sales increasing by 8.9% over the prior year in June as consumers begin to cut back on discretionary purchases,” says Colliers. 

“At the end of the second quarter, consumers began to purchase fewer products but paid more for them, as they increasingly turn to credit cards and savings to support essential expenditure,” the firm wrote. “There is also a shift in what people spend on, with much of the growth being driven by essential products where consumers have little choice but to accept higher costs. Over the last three months, gas spending accounted for 12.8% of the average household’s retail spend.”