MW: Except for autos, U.S. Sept. retail sales healthy
U.S. retail sales dropped 1.5% in September after the government's cash-for-clunkers subsidy ended, while sales excluding autos rose at a healthy pace, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. It was the largest decline in seasonally adjusted retail sales since December. In September, sales of motor vehicles dropped 10.4%, the largest decline in four years, more than reversing a 7.3% gain in August. Excluding autos, sales rose 0.5% in September. The results were stronger than expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch, who were forecasting a 2.3% decline in overall sales and a 0.3% gain in sales excluding autos.
