Uncertainty Over Trump’s Policies Casts a Winter Chill on the Economy

It’s Presidents Day, which used to be known as George Washington’s birthday before Abraham Lincoln was added to the celebration.

’s also a day when retailers like to offer sales to goose business after the normal slowdown seen coming out of the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. Data released Friday confirmed the slowdown – and then some – with retail sales tumbling 0.9% on the heels of two solid months of increases. Colder-than-usual weather across the U.S. was a contributing factor, according to analysts, but there are also concerns that the great American consumer spending machine may be cooling off.

“The retail sales report was impacted by the Los Angeles fires and other weather events, but US consumer spending has softened over the past few months,” BCA Research wrote in a client note Monday. “Excess savings are spent, and consumption now relies on a labor market that is softening. More importantly, after a strong increase following the U.S. election, consumer expectations have weakened” amid uncertainty over the economic policies of the new Trump administration.

While markets in the U.S. are closed Monday, economists and investors will get a chance to look at the health of another key part of the consumer economy this week when a series of reports on the health of the housing market are released. The housing market is constrained at the moment because of stubbornly high prices and mortgage rates that are at the top of the 6% range.