August Retail Sales Up 5% From '13, In Line With Views

August retail sales grew at the fastest rate in four months during August the U.S. Census Bureau said Friday, pegging total spending for the period at $444.4 billion. https://www.census.gov/retail/marts/www/marts_current.pdf Results were generally in line with economists' expectations for the period. Total retail and food service sales were up 0.6 percent during August compared with July, while spending was a full 5 percent ahead of year-ago levels. Automotive sales gained 9.5 percent from a year earlier, while the health and personal care category was up 8 percent. Excluding motor vehicles and related items, August retail sales were up 0.3 percent compared with July and 4 percent from 2013. Apparel sales grew gained 0.3 percent while sales of sporting goods increased 0.9 percent. The only two categories seeing declines were gasoline, down 0.8 percent on lower prices, and department stores, where sales fell 0.3 percent in August compared with July.