U.S. retail sales were unexpectedly flat in October, though consumer spending appears to have remained on a solid footing at the start of the fourth quarter despite the rising cost of living that is forcing some households to scale back. The unchanged reading in retail sales reported by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau on Tuesday followed a downwardly revised 0.1% gain in September. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast retail sales, which are mostly goods and are not adjusted for inflation, edging up 0.1% after a previously reported 0.2% rise in September.