December Retail Sales Rise 0.5%

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he Commerce Department said Thursday that retail sales rose 0.5% in December, the second straight increase.

Almost all trucking operations depend on the health of retail sales because such sales involve nearly every type of cargo.

December's increase to $325 billion followed a revised 1.2% increase in November, which was the highest since July. Excluding autos, sales rose 0.1%.

For all of last year, retail sales rose 5.6% compared with a 3.1% increase in 2002. It was the strongest year for retail sales since a 6.8% rise in 2000.

Economists had expected retail sales would rise 0.8% to $324.9 billion in December following a 0.9% gain initially reported for November, Bloomberg reported.

A drop in retail gasoline prices last month may have damped sales. Receipts at service stations fell 0.4% last month following a 2% rise in November.

Sales at automobile dealerships and parts stores rose 1.6% last month after rising 3%. Purchases at electronics and appliance stores increased 0.4% while sales of non-store retailers, which include online and catalog purchases, jumped 2.1%, the biggest increase since January 2002.

Sales at general merchandise stores, which include department stores, rose 0.3% last month, Commerce said.