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With a steep drop in sales by gas stations partly offsetting notable growth at other stores, the Commerce Department released a report on Friday showing a slightly smaller than expected increase in U.S. retail sales in the month of November.
The Commerce Department said retail sales edged up by 0.2 percent in November after spiking by an upwardly revised 1.1 percent in October.
Economists had expected retail sales to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.8 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.
Excluding a modest increase in sales by motor vehicles and parts dealers, retail sales still rose by 0.2 percent in November after jumping by an upwardly revised 1.0 percent in October. The uptick in ex-auto sales matched economist estimates.
