August Retail Sales Higher Than Anticipated

Washington, DC, Sept. 14, 2010--Retail sales rose 0.4% in August, the Commerce Department said. It marked the second straight increase and was the largest gain since March.

Core retail sales, which strip out autos, gasoline and building materials, rose 0.6% in August. This was also the highest since March.

The August retail report suggests that consumer spending will continue at a modest pace in the third quarter.

Consumer spending rose at a 2.0% annual pace in the second quarter, and economists expect spending to roughly match that pace in the current quarter.

Economists had been looking for total sales to rise 0.3% in August and for sales excluding autos to rise 0.4%.