Chain Store Sales Off 0.2% Last Week

New York, NY, July 24, 2007--Chain-store sales slid  0.2% for the week ended July 21, compared with the week earlier, according to a survey released on Tuesday by the International Council of Shopping Center and UBS Securities.

Sales were up 3% verses the year-ago period.

"Sales dipped slightly over the latest week as consumers in 12 states and the District of Columbia are seemingly doing the smart thing - waiting for those sales tax holidays that largely occur in the early part of August," said Michael Niemira, chief economist for the ICSC.