Retail Sales Fall for First Time in Five Months

Retail sales fell 0.1% in July, the first decline in five months, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

The drop matched economists’ forecasts, Bloomberg reported.

The decline followed a 0.3% gain in June that was bigger than the 0.1% gain originally reported.

Sales excluding automobiles rose 0.4%, while sales excluding gasoline fell 0.2%.

Almost all trucking operations depend on the health of retail sales because such sales involve nearly every type of cargo.