Chain Store Sales Dip Last Week but July Strong

New York, NY, August 7, 2007—Chain store sales were off by 0.3% in the week ended Aug. 4 from the week before on a seasonally adjusted, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers-UBS Retail Chain Store Sales Index. The results followed a 1.1% increase in the prior week.

"Despite the slight dip in the final week of the fiscal month, the overall pace of July sales was the strongest monthly growth since March 2007," said Mike Niemira, chief economist at ICSC who compiles the index. "The improvement was driven by the coldest temperatures for a July since 2004, normal summer clearance and early back-to-school shopping."

On the year, chain store sales were up 3.1% in the week ended August 4 compared with a rise of 3.2% in the prior week.