· According to the International Council of Shopping Centers ICSC-UBS Chain Store survey, sales slipped 0.7% last week and took back about all of the prior week's gain.

· Despite the latest decline sales so far in April have risen 0.8% from March, due to gains early in the month. Chain store sales in March were about unchanged from February.

· During the last ten years there has been a 45% correlation between the y/y change in chain store sales and the change in nonauto retail sales less gasoline.

· The ICSC-UBS retail chain-store sales index is constructed using the same-store sales (stores open for one year) reported by 78 stores of seven retailers: Dayton Hudson, Federated, Kmart, May, J.C. Penney, Sears and Wal-Mart.

· During the latest week the leading indicator of chain store sales from ICSC-UBS fell 0.5% (-2.0% y/y) and reversed most of the prior week's gain.

· Opportunity Knocks: Selling Our Services to the Rest of the World from the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and it is available here.