U.S. consumer spending edged up a slight 0.1 percent in September, a disappointing performance in which rebounding auto sales were offset by weakness in other areas.
But a category of retail sales that excludes volatile categories showed a stronger 0.5 percent gain in September, an improvement after no gain in August.
The Commerce Department said Monday that the scant overall gain in September followed an equally meager 0.1 percent increase in August.
It was the weakest two-month performance since the start of the year and was well below economist projections of a solid 0.6 percent rise in sales.
