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 WASHINGTON (AP) - Retail sales, bolstered by a rebound in demand for autos, rose a healthy 0.5 percent in February, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.
In addition to a solid sales performance last month, the government revised sharply higher its estimate for sales activity in January, showing a gain of 0.3 percent rather than the original estimate that sales had fallen by 0.3 percent at the beginning of the year.
Taken together, the two months showed that the consumer buying spree that began with a 1.3 percent sales surge in December was continuing in the new year despite stormy winter weather and rising energy prices.
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