Retail sales data released Thursday morning topped analyst estimates, showing a 0.4% increase in September. Nationwide’s chief economist and senior vice president Kathy Bostjancic joins to discuss what this signals about the state of the economy. Bostjancic notes the data provides “continued indication” that consumer spending remains robust. She highlights that it caps off a strong third quarter and provides good momentum heading into the fourth quarter, stating, “It shows that the consumer is continuing to power along here, and that’s positive for the overall economy.” She emphasizes that consumer spending is the primary driver of economic growth, suggesting that this data supports the idea of a “no landing” scenario. “I guess it’s a good problem for the Fed to struggle with, that economic growth continues to surprise on the high side in September,” Bostjancic states. She adds that this report could lead the Fed to reconsider its approach to interest rates in November. “I think there’s still a strong argument for them to raise rates in November. They could just pare the size back from 50 to 25 basis points, but it’s not a slam dunk that they will hike rates,” she explains.
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