Retail Sales Rise 0.4%; Ex-Autos Increase 0.2%

WASHINGTON — Retail sales rose 0.4% in July, buoyed by rising auto-related and gasoline sales, the Commerce Department reported Friday.

But retail sales excluding autos increased just 0.2%, weighed down by declines in most categories.

Economists polled by Thomson Reuters expected retail sales to rise 0.5%, and 0.3% excluding autos.

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