Econoday Report: ICSC-Goldman Store Sales May 27, 2009

ICSC-Goldman Store Sales

Released on 5/27/2009 7:45:00 AM For wk5/23, 2009

	Prior	Actual
Store Sales - W/W change	-1.2 %	0.8 %
Store Sales - Y/Y	-0.3 %	0.5 %

Highlights
ICSC-Goldman reports strength in the May 23 week, a week that benefited from warm weather and the approaching long weekend. Same-store sales were up 0.8 percent in the week with year-on-year sales up 0.5 percent -- both readings among the best of the year. The report still sees a year-on-year decline for the month of May, a month hurt by a very tough comparison with the tax rebates of May last year. But the financial market, unlike the retail industry, doesn't look at year-on-year, only month-on-month. Redbook, up next, will offer a month-to-date look at May vs. April.

Definition
This weekly measure of comparable store sales at major retail chains, published by the International Council of Shopping Centers, is related to the general merchandise portion of retail sales. It accounts for roughly 10 percent of total retail sales. Why Investors Care