US retail sales rise

US retail sales continued to rise last month but not by enough to fuel a strong economic recovery, according to the latest figures.

The Commerce Department said that total retail sales were up by 0.5 per cent in January, while December sales were revised to show a 0.1 per cent decline rather than 0.3 per cent. November’s sales were revised up by the department to 2 per cent from 1.8 per cent.

Shoppers concentrated their spending on big general retailers such as WalMart, as well as sports goods stores, and internet retailers.