Buisness for life
News > Jobs & Economy Buy now, sit later Consumer retail spending up 1.8% in March, better than expected, but will the momentum hold? April 13, 2004: 11:05 AM EDT By Parija Bhatnagar, CNN/Money staff writer NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Surprisingly strong retail sales numbers in March proved that U.S. shoppers may be in a buying mood right now, but some analysts caution that consumers could tighten their purse strings again once a tax refund stimulus wears thin. The Commerce Department said Tuesday that retail sales rose 1.8 percent to $333 billion last month, compared with an upwardly revised 1 percent gain in February.