Research >> Economics
ICSC Chain Store Sales rose by 0.8% in Apr 21 Wk
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The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) reported that chain store sales rose 0.8% from the prior week, while increasing 3.6% over the prior-year period during the week ending Apr 21st. Warm weather, receding gasoline prices and improving high‐income household consumer confidence all supported spending over the latest week. Additionally, the ICSC consumer tracking survey found that consumers were shopping more at department stores, which saw its sector’s traffic perk up nicely relative to the same week of last year. “Key consumer catalysts kicked into gear over this past week to help lift spending,” said Michael Niemira, ICSC’s vice president of research and chief economist. “As we head into the final sales weeks for April we continue to expect some sales volatility due to the Easter calendar shift.”
According to Weather Trends International (WTI), the national average temperature over the past week ending Saturday was 3.3°F warmer than last year and 4.3° warmer than its long‐term average. Meanwhile, fuel prices had their third straight weekly pullback. The US Energy Information Administration said gas prices fell 5.2 cents compared with the prior week to $3.87 on Apr 23rd, and are lower compared to the prior year (-0.2%) for the first time since Oct 2009. For all of April, ICSC Research forecasts a comparable‐store sales gain of between 3% and 4% compared with a "tough" Easter‐sales‐inflated gain of 8.5% in April 2011.
Posted: April 24, 2012 Tuesday 07:45 AM