The International Council of Shopping Centers on Tuesday released last week’s sales figures for chain stores nationwide — and the moral of the story is don’t let the little things get you down.
For the week ending Sept. 18, sales fell by 1.4 percent when compared with the prior week, according to the ICSC and Goldman Sachs Weekly Chain Store Sales Index. But, the report notes, when compared with the corresponding week last year, retail sales improved and rose by “a strong” 3.3 percent.
That means that while last week wasn’t anything to write home about, the year-over-year sales are a better indicator of where the economy is heading, said Michael Niemira, ICSC director of research and chief economist.
Niemira added that “September [is] on track for an industry-wide increase of about 3 percent overall.”
