Hey there from CNN. I'm Krista Bow with The Five Things You Need to know for Monday, March 17th.

Another warning sign for the economy is flashing.

Americans have been spending less than expected.

The Commerce Department reports retail sales in February rose only 0.2%,

which is up from January's decline, but it falls short of the 0.7% increase

economists had predicted. With department stores, restaurants, and gas stations seeing sales drop,

it's clear that shoppers are feeling the squeeze, adding to fears of an economic slowdown.

President Donald Trump's trade policies are driving a lot of uncertainty too.

A new report from a group of global economists dropped today,

and it's the first sweeping attempt to assess the impact of Trump's tariffs on the U.S. and its trading partners.

They warn that the tariffs are slowing economic growth while pushing prices higher and discouraging investment, creating long-term

challenges for business and consumers alike. More than half of the 261 migrants expelled

to El Salvador were deported Sunday under the 18th century Alien Enemies Act. That's according to a senior

administration official. The Trump administration invoked the sweeping wartime authority despite a federal court temporarily

blocking its use on Saturday evening, with the judge verbally ordering any planes in the air

carrying some of those migrants to turn back to the U.S. One person familiar with the matter said

the planes were already in the air at the time of the judge's ruling.

Trump administration officials have described some of those removed over the weekend as alleged members of a Venezuelan gang.

Here's Trump's response when he was asked about the deportations on Air Force One yesterday.

They invaded our country.

So this isn't, in that sense, this is war.

In many respects, it's more dangerous than war.

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