Washington, DC — Total adjusted U.S. retail and food service sales increased in July by 0.4 percent from the previous month to reach $362.7 billion, and grew 5.5 percent from the same month in 2009, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Excluding motor vehicle and part sales, July adjusted sales came in at $299.7 billion, up nearly $500 million from June. Food and beverage stores posted sales of $48 billion in July, with $43 billion coming from the grocery channel, decreases of 0.3 and 0.2 percent, respectively, from the month prior.

In addition, with the May through June 2010 percentage change revised from a decrease of 0.5 percent to an increase of 0.3 percent, total sales for the period were up 5.9 percent from the prior year, according to data from the Bureau.