12:42 PM EDT, 07/16/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US retail sales held steady last month versus market views for a decline, as spending growth in most major categories helped offset declines in the gas station and motor vehicle components, Census Bureau data showed Tuesday.

Sales were flat in June following an upwardly revised 0.3% rise in the month before. Analysts were modeling for a 0.3% decrease, according to a consensus survey compiled by Bloomberg. Annually, retail sales were up 2.3% in June, the government data showed.

"The June retail sales report shows a generally resilient US consumer that took advantage of the drop in gasoline prices to increase spending in other areas," BMO Chief US Economist Scott Anderson said. "The strong gain in real retail sales outside of motor vehicles and gasoline and the upward revision in May puts upside risk on the consensus forecast for (second-quarter) real consumer spending and (gross domestic product) growth."

Spending on motor vehicles and parts declined 2% sequentially in June. "A major cyber attack on auto dealer computer systems required sales to be recorded manually, introducing lags in recording that will be made up in July," according to Anderson. Excluding auto, retail sales rose by 0.4%, surpassing analysts' average expectation for a 0.1% gain.

Spending at gas stations fell 3% amid a 3.8% drop in fuel prices, Anderson said. "Together motor vehicle and gasoline station sales subtracted a whopping 0.6 percentage points from overall retail sales last month," Anderson wrote. Retail sales without auto and gas were up 0.8%, versus views for a 0.2% rise.

Retail sales at electronics and appliance stores moved 0.4% higher while clothing and accessory stores gained 0.6%. Building material and garden equipment climbed 1.4% while nonstore retailers grew 1.9%.

"Some (Federal Open Market Committee) hawks will remain leery of the consumers' resilience as they eye the potential for a July rate cut, thereby making September a safer bet as they await further data to gain confidence that inflation is sustainably moving toward the target," according to Anderson.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reportedly said on Monday that policymakers won't wait for inflation to fall to 2% before reducing interest rates.