U.S. Chain-Store Sales +3%

RAPAPORT... U.S. chain-store sales rose 3 percent year on year for the week that ended on December 28, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and Goldman Sachs. Week-to-week comparable-store sales improved 1 percent as consumers finished up their Christmas shopping.

“Business was brisk in the final days ahead of Christmas and for the week as a whole,” said Michael Niemira, ICSC's vice president of research and chief economist. “Now attention turns to holiday gift-card redemptions as, according to The ICSC-Goldman Sachs consumer tracking survey,  consumers’ average share of total holiday spending that was in the form of a gift card rose to a record 23.7 percent in 2013. This is good news as it means that the ‘extended season’ —the weeks after Christmas into January— will play an important role in the final tally of the season’s performance.”

ICSC Research anticipates that December's  chain-store sales will increase by between 3 percent and 4 percent. Comparable-store sales rose 2.1 percent in November, missing estimates of an increase of between 3.5 percent and 4.5 percent, according to ICSC. The weekly chain-store sales snapshot is produced by ICSC and Goldman Sachs to measure  nominal U.S. same-store, or comparable-store, sales while excluding restaurant and vehicle demand. The weekly sales index is presented on an adjusted basis to account for normal seasonal and other data anomalies.