US retail sales rise 0.7% to $696B in July, beating estimates

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - US retail sales increased 0.7% to reach $696.4 billion in July, according to advance figures released Tuesday by the Commerce Department.

Retail sales came more than market estimates of a 0.4% increase, while the June figure was revised to $691.3 billion for a gain of 0.3% from 0.2%.

On an annual basis, retail sales were up 3.2% in July, compared to the same month of last year.

The figure also came higher than the market expectation of a 1.5% gain.

Retail sales in June showed an annual increase of 1.6%.

The strong monthly and annual figures indicate that consumer demand remains strong in the world's largest economy.