Retail sales up a solid 0.7% in September as American consumers defy rising prices, interest rates

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO
AP Retail Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Americans kept spending in September at a solid pace even as they  grappled with higher prices and interest rates.Retail sales rose a better-than-expected 0.7% in September, compared with a revised 0.8% in August, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. Retail sales in August were inflated after gasoline prices spiked. Those prices have since begun to decline. September’s uptick in retail sales, the sixth consecutive monthly gain, reflects how the U.S. economy has remained resilient despite attempts by the Federal Reserve to cool spending and hiring.  Yet spending has been volatile after surging nearly 3% in January. Sales tumbled in February and March before recovering in the spring and summer.