New York, June 1--Chain store retail sales fell in the last week, taking the index to its lowest reading in nine weeks as cooler weather curbed consumers purchases of seasonal goods, a retail report said on Wednesday.
Sales fell 1.0 percent in the week ended May 28, compared with a 0.2 percent decrease 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 momentum also slowed to a 3.1 percent increase after a 3.7 percent rise the preceding week.
"Although there was a warm blast of weather for Memorial Day, the month as a whole was cooler than normal and the coldest May in at least a dozen years" said Michael Niemira, ICSC's chief economist and director of research.
"As a result, consumers' demand for hot weather goods such as air conditioners, fans, pool supplies, swim suits and the like was curbed. However, with the industry facing a tough comparison in May 2005 against May 2004's 5.7 percent increase and less than favorable weather, the industry performed reasonably well over the past four weeks," Niemira added.
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.
