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Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong>Read more<\/p>\n Sales<\/a> at U.S. retailers and restaurants rose slightly in September as resilient consumers moderated their spending after splurging over the summer.<\/p>\n Sales increased 0.2% last month from August, the Commerce Department<\/a> said Tuesday, in a report delayed more than a month because of the government shutdown. Many reports on inflation, employment, spending, and growth remain delayed and the government won\u2019t likely be caught up until late December. <\/p>\n The retail sales figures suggest that Americans as a whole are still willing and able to boost their spending, a key driver of the economy, despite high prices for groceries, rent, and many imported goods hit by tariffs. Steady consumer spending may lift the economy\u2019s growth to a solid 3% or higher annual rate in the July-September quarter, economists forecast, after a modest 1.6% expansion in the first half of the year.<\/p>\n At the same time, hiring has been weak and the unemployment rate has ticked higher, which could drag down consumer spending and the broader economy if it worsens. Unemployment<\/a> rose to 4.4% in September, the highest in nearly four years, from 4.3%, according to the delayed monthly jobs report released last week.<\/p>\n