Recent Updates
- US: Job Openings & Labor Turnover Survey (Aug), IP & Capacity Utilization (Sep)
- US: Business Leaders Survey (Oct), Home Builders (Oct)
- US: Industrial Production Detail (Sep)
- Canada: Intl Transactions in Securities (Aug)
- Italy: CPI, HICP Final (Sep)
- UK: Claims (Sep), Earnings (Aug), Employment (Jul)
- Turkey: Trade & Service Indices (Aug); Iraq: Public Budget (Jul); Nigeria: CPI (Sep), Terms of Trade (Jun); Lebanon:
- more updates...
Economy in Brief
U.S. Home Builder Index Improves, but Remains Below Last Year's High
The Composite Housing Market Index from the NAHB-Wells Fargo inched up during October to 68 from an unrevised 67 in September...
U.S. JOLTS: Job Openings Rate Hits Another Record
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the total job openings rate rose to a record 4.6% in August...
U.S. Gasoline and Crude Oil Prices Ease; Natural Gas Prices Increase
Gasoline prices slipped to an average $2.88 per gallon last week (+15.7% y/y)...
Macroeconomic Assessments by ZEW Experts Continue to Sink
Financial experts responding in the ZEW economic survey found current conditions weaker just about across the board...
U.S. Retail Sales Post Disappointing Increase
Total retail sales improved 0.1% (4.7% y/y) during September...
by Tom Moeller May 3, 2005
Chain store sales gained 0.5% during the final week of April according to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)-UBS survey. The increase raised the average of sales in April 0.4% versus March when sales fell 0.2%.
During the last ten years there has been a 56% correlation between the y/y change in chain store sales and the change in non-auto retail sales less gasoline, as published by the US Census Department. Chain store sales correspond directly with roughly 14% of non-auto retail sales less gasoline.
The leading indicator of chain store sales from ICSC ticked 0.1% (-0.3% y/y) higher, the third consecutive weekly rise following three declines.
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.
Reexamining the Consumption-Wealth Relationship: The Role of Uncertainty from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York can be found here.
| ICSC-UBS (SA, 1977=100) | 04/30/05 | 04/23/05 | Y/Y | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Weekly Chain Store Sales | 458.0 | 455.8 | 3.0% | 4.6% | 2.9% | 3.6% |
