consumer spending in the months ahead. gasoline prices have fallen nearly 50 cents a gallon since they peaked in april. falling gasoline prices will certainly help the u.s. consumer. you couple that with modest improvements in nominal wages and what it points to, quite frankly, is a household standard of living that s improved. reporter: shoppertrak is predicting a strong 4% gain in august back-to-school sales. but there are plenty of skeptics who think sales will be flat or even lower, as parents stick to buying necessities. erika miller, n.b.r., new york. tom: still ahead, doomsday for u.s. i.o.u.s? one of the biggest owners of government bonds warns without a credible, long-term spending plan, interest rates may shoot up in a few years. we talk with vanguard s fixed income chief robert auwaerter. nightly business report is brought to you by: captioning sponsored by wpbt tom: the weak retail results combined with worries about the global economic outlook to take
consumer spending in the months ahead. gasoline prices have fallen nearly 50 cents a gallon since they peaked in april. falling gasoline prices will certainly help the u.s. consumer. you couple that with modest improvements in nominal wages and what it points to, quite frankly, is a household standard of living that s improved. reporter: shoppertrak is predicting a strong 4% gain in august back-to-school sales. but there are plenty of skeptics who think sales will be flat or even lower, as parents stick to buying necessities. erika miller, n.b.r., new york. tom: still ahead, doomsday for u.s. i.o.u.s? one of the biggest owners of government bonds warns without a credible, long-term spending plan, interest rates may shoot up in a few years. we talk with vanguard s fixed income chief robert auwaerter. nightly business report is brought to you by: captioning sponsored by wpbt tom: the weak retail results combined with worries about the global economic outlook to take
analysts were expecting an increase. not since the height of the financial crisis has there been a string of declines from the retail sector. erika miller reports. shoppers didn t just spend less at department stores, auto dealerships, and furniture stores. spending fell in june in almost every category. that s not the only worrisome sign. when retail sales fall three months in a row, it can sometimes signal recession. but that s probably not the case this time. the retail sales report was disappointing. it reflects ongoing slowdown in the global economy, ongoing weakness in the u.s. economy. it should come as no surprise when you see businesses not willing to add significant quantities. reporter: today s retail data did prompt some economists to downgrade their estimates for 2nd quarter economic growth to close to 1%. that would be roughly half the increase in the first quarter. but, some optimists do see a silver lining that could boost consumer spending in the months
retail sector. erika miller reports. shoppers didn t just spend less at department stores, auto dealerships, and furniture stores. spending fell in june in almost every category. that s not the only worrisome sign. when retail sales fall three months in a row, it can sometimes signal recession. but that s probably not the case this time. the retail sales report was disappointing. it reflects ongoing slowdown in the global economy, ongoing weakness in the u.s. economy. it should come as no surprise when you see businesses not willing to add significant quantities. reporter: today s retail data did prompt some economists to downgrade their estimates for 2nd quarter economic growth to close to 1%. that would be roughly half the increase in the first quarter. but, some optimists do see a silver lining that could boost consumer spending in the months ahead. gasoline prices have fallen nearly 50 cents a gallon since they peaked in april. falling gasoline prices will certain