Retail Sales Rise in May Excluding Gasoline

Washington, DC, June 13, 2012 --  U.S. retail sales fell in May for the second month in a row due to lower gasoline prices, according to the Commerce Department.

Retail sales declined by 0.2% last month. Excluding gasoline sales, retail spending actually rose a slight 0.1%

Sales were also revised lower for April and March and marked the first back-to-back drop since May and June 2010.

The Labor Department reported that falling gasoline prices contributed to a  1% drop in wholesale costs for May.

Auto sales rose 0.8% but excluding autos retail sales fell 0.4%.