美国7月份零售销售创四个月来最快增长，零售销售额是一个国家经济健康与否的重要指标。
美国商务部星期五说，消费者上个月在汽车、家具和汽油方面的支出有所增加，帮助提振零售上涨0.5%。美国六月份的零售销售也略有上涨。
消费者支出占美国经济的70%，因此消费者的支出的数据受到广泛关注。7月份消费者支出是继今年三月零售销售出现0.8%的涨幅之后的最大涨幅。
居高不下的失业率和高涨的油价导致今年年初美国经济复苏放缓。最近，汽油价格温和下跌，让消费者口袋有了更多一些现金。
不过，这星期让许多股票投资者很担心，原因是在信用评级公司标准普尔一个星期前将美国的信用评级下调后，美国股市剧烈波动。
上个月，学校开学前的促销活动以及新汽车的销售增加也帮助提振了消费者的支出。政府衡量的13类物品中有9大类出现了销售增长。
U.S. retail sales, a key barometer of the country's economic health, increased in July by the most in four months.
The government's Commerce Department said Friday that consumers spent more on autos, furniture and gasoline last month, helping push retail sales up by one-half of one percent, following a slightly smaller increase in June.
Consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of the U.S. economy, so consumer spending trends are watched closely. The July spending increase was the country's biggest since an advance of eight-tenths of a percent in March.
High unemployment and rising gasoline prices slowed the U.S. economic recovery earlier in the year. Gas prices have moderated lately, leaving a bit more cash in consumers' pockets.
However, many stock investors have worried this week as the country's stock markets have whipsawed wildly between losses and gains after Standard & Poor's downgraded the country's credit rating a week ago.
Back-to-school sales promotions helped boost some consumer spending last month, as did increased new car sales. Nine of the 13 categories measured by the government showed increased sales.