Haver Analytics
Haver Analytics
Global| Oct 11 2005

Chain Store Sales Up Slightly Last Week

Summary

Chain store sales added 0.2% last week to the prior week's 0.6% jump, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)-UBS survey. Though sales have risen during the past three successive weeks, the level in early [...]


Chain store sales added 0.2% last week to the prior week's 0.6% jump, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)-UBS survey. Though sales have risen during the past three successive weeks, the level in early October was 0.2% below the September average which fell 1.7% from the August average, .

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 dropped 0.5% (-2.5% y/y) for the second time in three weeks and the decline was the fifth since the middle of August. 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.

The Economics of Giving from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is available here.

ICSC-UBS (SA, 1977=100) 10/08/05 10/01/05 Y/Y 2004 2003
Total Weekly Chain Store Sales 448.9 448.0 2.7% 4.6% 2.9%
  • Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio.   Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984.   He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C.   In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists.   Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.

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