The Census Bureau's Advance Retail Sales Report for August showed consumer spending was higher than expected, with headline sales rising 0.6% versus the expected 0.2% monthly growth. This is unchanged from July's upwardly revised 0.6% growth and marks the third consecutive monthly increase in headline sales. For an inflation-adjusted perspective on retail sales, take a look at our Real Retail Sales commentary. Here is the introduction from today's report: Advance estimates of U.S. retail and food service ...