The U.S. Commerce Department released the retail sales data on Wednesday. The U.S. retail sales declined 0.3% in March, missing expectations for a 0.1% rise, after a 0.1% fall in February.

The decrease was mainly driven by a fall in sales at auto dealerships.

Sales at clothing retailers were down 0.9% in March, sales at building material and garden equipment stores increased 1.4%, while sales at auto dealerships slid 2.1%.

Retail sales excluding automobiles rose 0.2% in March, missing expectations for a 0.5% increase, after a 0.1% decline in February.

Sales at service stations climbed 0.9% in March, while sales at furniture stores rose 0.3%.

These figures indicates that the U.S. economic growth was weak in the first quarter.