July retail sales see gains, reports Commerce

United States July retail sales saw mild gains, according to data issued today by the Department of Commerce’s Census Bureau.

July retail sales, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading day differences but not price changes, came in at $726.3 billion, up 0.5% over June’s revised $722.6 billion. And total retail sales, from May through July, posted a 3.9% annual gain compared to the same period a year ago.

Commerce reported that retail trade sales increased 0.7% over June and 3.7% annually, and non-store retailers, which includes e-commerce, posted an 8.0% annual gain. And food service and drinking places saw a 5.6% annual gain.

The recently-released CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor, in partnership with Affinity Solutions highlighted July retail sales gains, too.

It reported that total retail sales, excluding automobiles and gasoline, rose 1.45% on a seasonally-adjusted basis month-over-month and were up 5.89% on an unadjusted annual basis in July.

And its core calculation of retail sales (excluding restaurants in addition to automobile dealers and gasoline stations) increased 1.55% sequentially and up 5.93% annually, compared to a 0.32% sequential decline and 3.36% annual gain in June. Through the first seven months of 2025 the Retail Monitor reported that total retail sales increased 4.83% annually, with core retail sales seeing a 5.07% annual gain.