Washington, DC, January 13, 2006--Retail sales rose a seasonally adjusted 0.7% in December as auto and gasoline sales strengthened, according to a Commerce Department report.
Excluding a 2.6% gain in auto sales, seasonally adjusted retail sales rose 0.2% in December.
Sales in October and November were revised higher by a cumulative 0.4%. November's sales increased 0.8%, the department said.
Taking the revisions into account, retail sales were slightly stronger than the 0.9% gain expected by economists. Retail sales excluding autos were weaker than the 0.4% expected.
In the fourth quarter retail sales increased 0.6%..
Sales in December were up 6.3% from December 2004.
For all of 2005, sales increased 7.3%, down from a 7.6% gain in 2004. The figures are not adjusted for price changes.
Sales at gasoline station increased 0.9% in December despite declining prices. Excluding both autos and gasoline, retail sales increased 0.1% in December, the weakest since July.
Sales at building materials stores fell 0.6%. Sales at furniture and electronics stores dropped 0.1%.
