Consumer spending held up well in July as inflation slowed, with retail sales turning in a stronger than expected showing for the month, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. The advanced retail sales report showed a seasonally adjusted increase of 0.7% for the month, better than the 0.4% Dow Jones estimate. Excluding autos, sales rose a robust 1%, also against a 0.4% forecast. As the numbers are not adjusted for inflation, they showed a consumer able to keep ahead of price increases that have been prevalent over the past two years. The consumer price index rose 0.2% on the month, indicating solid demand. July’s ... (full story)