Washers and dryers are displayed at a retail store in Vernon Hills, Ill., Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)2025-08-15T12:42:07Z NEW YORK (AP) Shoppers stepped up their spending in July, particularly at the nations auto dealerships.Retail sales rose 0.5% last month, a slowdown from a revised 0.9% in June, according to the Commerce Departments report released Friday.The increases followed two consecutive months of spending declines a 0.1% pullback in April and a 0.9% slowdown in May.Excluding auto sales, which have been volatile since President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on many foreign-made cares. retail sales rose 0.3%.Auto sales rose 1.6%. They appear to have returned roughly to normalized spending after a surge in March and April as Americans attempted to get ahead of Trumps 25% duty on imported cars and parts and then a slump after that, according to Samuel Tombs, chief U.S. Economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.Business at clothing stores was up 0.7% while at electronics stores, sales were down 0.6%. Online retailers saw a 0.8% increase. ANNE DINNOCENZIO DInnocenzio writes about retail, trends, the consumer economy and hourly workers for The Associated Press. twitter mailto