US retail sales slow by more-than-expected in June

WASHINGTON (AFP) –

US retail sales slowed by more-than-expected in June, rising 0.1 percent as American consumers cut back on spending at the nation’s malls, a government reported showed Tuesday.

The Commerce Department said, in a monthly snapshot, that retail sales rose 0.1 percent last month compared with a revised 0.8 percent increase in May.

The rise in June retail sales was less-than-predicted as most Wall Street analysts had forecast that sales would rise 0.4 percent.