02:38 PM EDT, 07/17/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Retail sales rose by 0.6% in June and were up 0.5% excluding a 1.2% gain in auto sales, above estimates for both metrics.

A 0.9% gain in clothing sales, a 0.6% increase in food services and drinking places sales and a 0.9% gain in building materials sales were the key factors, while gasoline station sales were flat.

Control group retail sales, which exclude motor vehicles, gas, building materials, and food services, rose by 0.5% after a 0.2% gain in May.

Import prices rose by only 0.1% in June and were still up 0.1% excluding a 0.7% drop in fuel prices.

Export prices rose by 0.5% in June and were also up 0.5% excluding a 0.8% gain in agricultural prices.

Business inventories were flat in May, as expected, and following a flat reading in April. Business sales fell by 0.4%, with declines at the wholesale and retail levels that were partially offset by a small gain at the factory level.

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve's manufacturing reading jumped to 15.9 in July from minus 4.0 in June, a return to expansion after a similar gain in the New York Fed's manufacturing report earlier in the week.

The National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index rose to 33 in July from 32 in June but was still down sharply from a reading of 41 a year ago. NAHB said that affordability challenges continue to depress home buying.

Initial jobless claims decreased by 7,000 to 221,000 in employment survey week ended July 12, a fifth straight decrease and trimming the four-week moving average by 6,250 to 229,500, a fourth straight drop. Initial claims were at a level of 246,000 in the employment survey week ended June 14.

Insured claims rose by 2,000 to 1.956 million in the week ended July 5.

Natural gas stocks rose by 46 billion cubic feet to 3.052 trillion cubic feet in the week ended July 11, down 4.9% from a year earlier but 6.2% higher than the seasonal average for the current week over the previous five years.

The Q2 GDPnow estimate from the Atlanta Fed is for a 2.4% gain, revised down from a 2.6% increase reported on July 9. The next estimate is scheduled for Friday.