New York, August 31--Chain store sales in the final week of August finished lower, due partly to high gasoline prices and hurricanes, pushing down expectations for monthly sales results, a report said on Tuesday.
Sales fell by 0.2 percent in the week ended August 28, down from a 0.1 percent increase in the previous week, the International Council of Shopping Centers and UBS said in a joint report. Compared with the same week a year ago, sales increased by 2.6 percent, down from the 2.9 percent pace of the preceding week.
Because of disappointing results from department stores, ICSC cut its forecast for comparable-store sales growth in August for the second consecutive time to 1.5 percent from 2.0 percent on year-over-year basis, versus the prior growth forecast of 2.5 percent.
The ICSC-UBS Weekly Chain Store Sales Snapshot is compiled from a group of major discount, department and chain stores across the country that report their weekly results.
