US consumer spending up steadily

The US consumer spending increased solidly in December, but the unprecedented frozen weather kept the growth at tepid pace, the Department of Commerce said on Tuesday. The retail and food services sales for December, which was seasonally adjusted, increased 0.2 percent from a month ago to 431. 9 billion U.S. dollars. On a year-on-year basis, it was up 4.1 percent. Total sales for 2013 were up 4.2 percent from a year ago. Compared with 0.4 percent month-on-month increase in November, December's lukewarm growth was held down by dwindling sales of automobiles, furniture, sporting goods and building materials which were vulnerable to the chilly weather. Food consumption rose by the most at 2 percent, followed by 1.8 percent for clothing, 1.6 percent for gasoline and 1.4 percent for online retailers.