Retail Sales Down 2nd Month

Retail sales in September dropped for the second consecutive month, the government said today, confirming economists’ view that the confidence of American consumers is slipping.

The Commerce Department said sales fell 0.4% last month to a seasonally adjusted $133.7 billion. That followed a dip of 0.1% in August and was the first back-to-back drop since September-October, 1987. “Consumers are just very cautious. They’re worried about where the economy is going and they’re probably right,” said Michael K. Evans, an economic consultant in Washington.