Consumers stocking up due to tariff anxiety boosted overall retail sales in April

Retail sales, excluding automobiles and gasoline, were up 0.72% seasonally adjusted month over month and up 6.76% unadjusted year over year in April, according to the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor. The marks were higher than the increases of 0.6% month over month and 4.75% year over year in March.