The Nation Retail Federation on Wednesday revised down its forecast for 2015 retail sales and said it expects back-to-school revenues to fall from last year.
The industry association anticipates retail sales growth of 3.5 percent this year, down from an earlier estimate of 4.1 percent. It cited “unexpectedly slow growth” during the first half of the year due to factors including treacherous winter weather and the West Coast port shutdown.
Households are also spending a growing share of their income on services rather than goods, the federation said.
“It’s a little bit like deja vu all over again. We did that last summer,” federation President and CEO Matthew Shay told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
