Building materials boost U.S. retail sales

WASHINGTON ― U.S. retail sale rose 0.5% in June, according to the Department of Commerce, in line with economists’ expectations. At the same time, the May figure was revised to a 1.3% increase instead of the 0.8% originally reported. Compared to last June, sales increased by 6.6%. Building materials and other “core” categories like automobiles and food services were responsible for the increase: without them, sales in June remained unchanged from May.