U.S. Retail Sales Increase in December

• U.S. Retail Sales Increase in December

Consumer spending surged in the world’s largest economy in December as holiday shopping aided sales.

Sales rose 0.4 percent in the month, according to the Commerce Department. November number was revised up from 0.8 percent to 0.9 percent.

Sales were supported by a 1.2 percent jump in receipts from garden and building material stores. While sales at service stations were unchanged in December, auto stores climbed 0.2 percent.

The average gain in retail sales over the last two months was the strongest for any November and December since 2010. The upward revision to retail sales excluding motor vehicles reflected a noted pickup at Internet retailers.

Meanwhile, core inflation climbed better than expected in the month, rising 0.3 percent with all items consumer prices rising 2.1 percent to beat Fed’s 2 percent target.