US Retail Sales Rise for Third Month in a Row

Group 1 - Retail sales showed a stronger than expected increase of 0.6% in August, following a 0.5% increase in July, surpassing the forecast of 0.2% [1][2] - Retail sales excluding automobiles rose by 0.7%, and when excluding both autos and gas, the increase remained at 0.7% [2] - The control group, which impacts GDP calculations, increased by 0.7% after a 0.3% gain in July, indicating robust consumer spending [2][3] Group 2 - The back-to-school shopping season appears to have been strong, with consumers seemingly unaffected by tariffs during August [3] - Import prices increased by 0.3%, which is a decrease from the previous month's increase of 0.4%, contrary to expectations of a decline [3][4] - The data suggests that exporters are not absorbing tariff costs but are passing them on to importers, wholesalers, and retailers, impacting consumer prices [4]