US: Retail Sales rose 0.7% in July vs. 0.3% expected, DXY advances to 98

• Retail sales grew by more than expected in the US in July.
• US Dollar Index gains traction on the back of upbeat data.

According to the data released by the US Census Bureau on Thursday, retail sales in the United States increased by 0.7% on a monthly basis in July and beat the market expectation of 0.3%. With the initial market reaction, the Greenback gathered strength and the US Dollar Index (DXY) advanced to the 98 handle.

Retail sales excluding cars rose 1% in the same period and other data from the US revealed that Initial Jobless Claims rose to 220,000 and came in worse than the market expectation of 214,000 for the week ending August 9.