Consumers spent less than expected in July as a pullback in auto sales helped cool an economy struggling to shake off the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
Retail sales rose 1.2 percent for the month, against the expected increase of 2.3 percent from economists surveyed by Dow Jones.
The news wasn’t all a letdown, however: Excluding autos, the gain was 1.9 percent, ahead of the 1.2 percent estimate. A separate report also showed that worker productivity rose at its fastest pace in 11 years, up 7.3 percent annualized for the second quarter and well ahead of the 1.5 percent Reuters estimate.
Overall, it was the third straight monthly increase in retail sales.
Click here to see the full story from Jeff Cox at CNBC.com.
