Purchases at automobile dealers dropped 0.3 percent after rising 0.2 percent in July, today's report showed. The results are in sync with industry figures. Cars and light trucks sold at a 12.1 million seasonally adjusted annual rate in August, down from a 12.5 million pace in the first half of the year and little changed from July, according to researcher Autodata Corp.

Auto Sales

Purchases excluding autos increased 0.1 percent, today's report showed. They were projected to rise 0.2 percent, the survey median showed.

The auto industry is trying to recover from supply disruptions caused by Japan's earthquake in March, which hurt production, availability and sales.

Excluding autos, gasoline and building materials, which are the figures used to calculate gross domestic product, sales were unchanged, the weakest performance so far this year, after a 0.3 percent increase in July.

Spending on so-called big-ticket items such as cars and appliances is threatened by a lack of job creation. Payrolls in the world's largest economy stagnated last month and unemployment held at 9.1 percent, Labor Department figures showed earlier this month.

The risk of a broader pullback in the economy has increased pressure on the Federal Reserve, Obama administration and Congress to step up efforts to spur the economy.

Obama's Plan

A plan from President Barack Obama, announced before a joint session of Congress on Sept. 8, called for an extension of a payroll-tax break for Americans and unemployment assistance. He also pushed for a payroll tax break for small businesses, an increase in infrastructure spending and more aid for cash- strapped state governments.

A majority of Americans don't believe Obama 's $447 billion jobs proposal will help lower the unemployment rate, a Bloomberg National Poll conducted Sept. 9-12 showed.

The downbeat assessment of the American Jobs Act reflects a growing and broad sense of dissatisfaction with the president. Americans disapprove of his handling of the economy by 62 percent to 33 percent, The disapproval number represents a nine point increase from six months ago.