RETAIL SALES

Americans shopped less in July and more signed up for jobless benefits last week in a double dose of bad news for the U.S. economy just a day after the Federal Reserve said it saw a leveling out of the slump.

Unexpected Retail Slip; Opel Deal Near; CIT Reveal

U.S. stocks rose on Thursday as better-than-expected earnings by Wal-Mart Stores Inc offset gloomy government reports on retail sales and employment.

Mexico's peso firmed to a 9-month high on Thursday as appetite for higher risk assets grew after data showed Europe's biggest economies had exited recession.

Retail sales fell unexpectedly in July, the government reported on Thursday despite the boost from the cash-for-clunkers automobile incentive program. U.S. retail sales fell 0.1 percent the Commerce

Oil prices rose on Thursday to near $71 a barrel after better-than-expected results from U.S. retail giant Wal-Mart reinforced hopes for an economic recovery and pushed up Wall Street stocks.

U.S. stocks edged lower on Thursday as gloomy government reports on retail sales and employment undercut hopes that the economy was on the road to recovery.

Sales at U.S. retailers unexpectedly fell in July and the number of workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose last week, indicating the recession-hit economy faced a bumpy recovery.

Sales at U.S. retailers unexpectedly fell in July from June, a government report showed on Thursday, casting a shadow over an anticipated rebound in consumer spending in the third quarter.

U.S. stock index futures rose more than 1 percent on Thursday after Wal-Mart Stores Inc reported second-quarter results that topped Wall Street's expectations, boosting investors' confidence in consumer spending ahead of a government report on July retail sales.

When Wal-Mart Stores Inc reports second-quarter results on Thursday, it will provide a much-awaited glimpse into the state of consumer spending as measured by the billions of dollars that flow through its cash registers every quarter.

Oil rose below $71 a barrel on Tuesday, ending a three-day losing streak ahead of U.S. data expected to show a fall in gasoline stocks, with weaker-than-expected Chinese economic data acting as a drag.

The dollar retained most of its gains against a basket of currencies on Monday but lost ground to the yen as Japanese exporters and short-term speculators took advantage of its jump the previous session on U.S. jobs data.

China's National Bureau of Statistics will issue all its monthly economic data for July at a news conference on Tuesday.

A shift in mindset among currency investors, who are now buying dollars on good news about the U.S. economy, may help the greenback in a week highlighted by a Federal Reserve policy meeting and data on retail sales.

U.S. retailers reported their 11th straight month of sales declines in July as shoppers continued to search for bargains and basics in the downturn.

U.S. retailers reported their 11th straight month of sales declines in July, as shoppers continued to search for bargains and basics in the downturn.

The Australian Dollar opens little changed on Wednesday at 0.8440. In offshore trade the unit traded between a low of 0.8384 in early Europe and a high of 0.8450. In local economic data, retail sales fell 1.4 per cent for the month of June, but surged overall throughout the June quarter.

General Motors Co said on Monday its U.S. auto sales fell 19.4 percent in July from a year earlier, but retail sales rose from the month before for a fifth consecutive month, supported by the U.S. government's Cash for Clunkers incentives.

Ford Motor Co said on Monday that U.S. auto sales rose 2.3 percent in July, its first year-over-year monthly sales increase since November 2007, supported by the U.S. government Cash for Clunkers program.

The world's top two steelmakers and leading carmakers said on Wednesday any return to growth would be gradual, casting doubt over some economists' forecasts for a recovery starting later this year.