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RAPAPORT... U.S. weekly chain-store sales rose 2.6 percent year on year for the week that ended on July 14, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and Goldman Sachs. However, on a week-to-week basis, comparable-store sales were flat. “As Mother Nature continued to deliver a heat wave across the nation, consumers got a jump start on their back-to-school shopping as a third of households reported in the ICSC-Goldman Sachs weekly consumer tracking survey that they have already begun this annual shopping ritual,” said Michael Niemira, ICSC's vice president of research and chief economist. “Looking forward, the retail industry should continue to see moderate increases in sales as the intensity of back-to-school shopping will gain strength.” ICSC Research anticipates that comparable-store sales will increase by between 1 percent and 1.5 percent with stronger growth when excluding drug store sales. The weekly chain-store sales snapshot is produced by ICSC and Goldman Sachs to measure U.S. nominal 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.
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