Chain Store Sales Higher Than Last Year

New York, NY, Aug. 9, 2010--Chain-store sales for the week ended Aug. 7 rose 3.7% from the same time last year, according to a survey released Tuesday by the International Council of Shopping Centers and Goldman Sachs.

On a week-over-week basis, sales dipped 0.2%.

"Sales moderated a tad during the first week of the August fiscal month," said Michael Niemira, ICSC's chief economist.

"Back-to-school sales state tax holidays kicked in late in the week for a number of states, which helped to drive customer traffic in those states, but that was not enough to provide a nationwide lift to the sales pace from the prior week."

ICSC expects August sales to rise 3%, lifted by back-to-school demand.