U.S. retail sales and inflation rose in January, strengthening the case for the central bank to raise interest rates.

Retail sales advanced four-tenths of a percent for the month. PNC Bank economists Gush Faucher says the gain is partly due to an improving labor market with "more jobs and rising wages" as workers become scarce.

Economists watch retail sales because consumer demand drives most U.S. economic activity.

A separate report shows U.S. consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in nearly four years, with costs gaining six-tenths of a percent in January and 2.5 percent in the past year.

The Federal Reserve works to keep prices rising at a modest two percent annual rate, and can raise interest rates to lower inflation.

美国零售销售和通货膨胀在1月份上升，为美联储继续加息铺路。

零售销售本月增长0.4%。 PNC银行经济学家格斯·福奇说，上涨的部分原因是劳动力市场不断改善，随着工人变得越来越稀缺，造成“就业越来越多，工资越来越高”。

经济学家密切观察零售销售，因为消费者需求驱动着大多数美国经济活动。

另一份报告显示，美国消费者价格在近四年内以最快的速度增长，1月份的成本增长了0.6%，过去一年的增长率为2.5％。

美联储致力于保持消费价格每年2％的适度增长，可以通过提高利率以降低通货膨胀。