August sales figures from leading US retailers on Thursday suggested that middle- and lower-income consumers were responding to higher energy prices and interest rates by making selective spending cutbacks.

Retail Metrics, which tracks the monthly figures, said its index for the month rose 3.1 per cent, slightly better than forecast. But Ken Perkins, president, noted that the 52 per cent of retailers who exceeded market forecasts represented a fourth consecutive month in which the number had fallen.