Consumers may have taken a shopping break in June, but they were back in stores last month, shopping at general merchandise, sporting goods, and furniture stores.

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), July retail sales in the GAFS category-general merchandise stores, clothing and clothing accessories stores, furniture and home-furnishings stores, electronics and appliances stores, and sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores-rose 7.2% over last year and increased 0.8% over June.

"The strength of July sales demonstrates that June's weakness was simply a blip on the radar," said NRF Chief Economist Rosalind Wells. "July's sales indicate that retailers are clearly poised to benefit from healthy back-to-school sales."

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