US retail sales rise more than expected in August as auto sales surged - Fox Business

U.S. retail sales rose more than expected in August boosted by purchases of new autos and building supplies, suggesting the economy remained strong, even as fears over an impending slowdown continued to mount.

The Commerce Department said on Friday that retail sales climbed by 0.4 percent in August, well above analyst expectations of 0.2 percent, on the heels of blowout data in July, when households boosted purchases of cars and clothing.

Online sales, meanwhile, also continued to climb, rising 1.6 percent. That's similar to July, when Amazon held its two-day, blowout Prime Day sale.

The U.S. consumer has remained relatively resilient in the face of a darkening economic outlook as uncertainties from the U.S.-China trade war continue to rattle markets.

"The manufacturing and agricultural sectors in the U.S. are being hit by the trade war, but the consumer remains healthy and is keeping overall economic growth at or even slightly above trend," David Berson, Nationwide's chief economist, said in a statement. "Today’s data are yet another reason to expect that the Federal Reserve will ease policy by only 25 basis points at next week’s FOMC meeting, rather than by a larger 50 basis points."

The report is the last big economic report before the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting next week, during which policymakers are widely expected to lower interest rates.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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