Canadian retail sales posted a surprise decline and inflation slowed, signs of fading consumer spending that had been propping up the economy. Retail sales fell 0.1 percent in June compared with economist forecasts for a gain of 0.5 percent, Statistics Canada said Friday from Ottawa. In a separate report, the agency said annual inflation slowed to 1.3 percent in July, from 1.5 percent the prior month. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had forecast annual inflation of 1.4 percent. Slack in the world’s 11th largest economy has kept inflation below the central bank’s 2 percent target for almost two years, and the decline in retail sales fuels worries that consumer fatigue may have added to the economy’s woes in the second quarter — Bloomberg
