Not only did August retail sales rise a strong 0.4%, but June and July sales were revised up. We care because retail sales are about 25% of consumer spending, and consumer spending accounts for 68% of GDP. Thus, retail sales are 17% of GDP! Moreover, average hourly earnings rose at the fastest pace since 2007 in the three months through 8/19, and job quits just hit a cyclical high of 2.4%/month!