
Consumer spending jumps despite inflation surge
CBSN
Americans largely shrugged off higher prices last month and stepped up their spending at retail stores and online, providing a boost to the economy.
Retail sales rose a seasonally adjusted 1.7% in October from September, the U.S. Commerce Department said Tuesday. That's up from 0.8% in the previous month.
"Today's stronger-than-expected retail sales numbers further underscore that the US consumer is back, after a summer plagued by the Delta variant of the coronavirus," Matthew Sherwood, global economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit, said. "Although consumer sentiment is being hit hard by the sharp rise in inflation, it is not enough to keep households from hitting the stores and gearing up for Christmas."

Robert Morris, founding pastor of Gateway Church, a megachurch in Southlake, Texas, has been indicted on five counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child, stemming from alleged incidents dating back to the 1980s, the Oklahoma attorney general's office announced Wednesday. We are aware of the actions being taken by the legal authorities in Oklahoma and are grateful for the work of the justice system in holding abusers accountable for their actions. We continue to pray for Cindy Clemishire and her family, for the members and staff of Gateway Church, and for all of those impacted by this terrible situation.