November Retail Sales Rose a Strong 0.9%
After two months of weak gains, a rebound in automobile purchases helped retail sales to a strong 0.9 percent increase last month as the Christmas selling season got going, the Commerce Department reported yesterday.</br></br>Sales were also strong at building supply and furniture stores, and those selling general merchandise and apparel.</br></br>In a separate report, the Labor Department said consumer prices rose 0.1 percent last month while the core portion of the consumer price index, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, increased 0.2 percent.</br></br>Over the past 12 months, the core CPI rose 2.1 percent and the overall index was up 2.6 percent. The difference was due primarily to a 10.5 percent year-over-year increase in energy costs, which constitute about 7 percent of the CPI.</br></br>In a third economic report released yesterday, Commerce said the United States had a record $89.9 billion deficit in its international transactions in the third quarter.