US August retail sales ex-autos rise 1.4% MoM, vs 0.6% expected

The beat matters less for the headline than for the revision: a prior reading of -0.3% flipping to +1.4% against a 0.6% consensus suggests the consumer is more resilient than the prior month's data implied. That complicates any narrative of a fast-cooling demand backdrop, which is the real signal for risk assets. Whether this strength holds in the next report — or proves a one-month rebound — is the open question.