US retail sales slow slightly, says report

Sales at US chain stores slowed somewhat last week from the brisk pace of previous weeks, a report said today.

Sales at major US chain stores rose 2.2 per cent in the week ended July 26th compared with the same week a year ago after rising per cent the previous week, the report said.

Sales rose 0.8 per cent compared with the previous month, Instinet Research said in its weekly Redbook report.

The report said sales were driven by core consumer goods such as food and household products while retailers were accelerating promotional selling to reduce excess inventories.

The Redbook Average is compiled from a sample of general merchandise retailers representing about 9,000 stores. Same-store sales measure revenue at stores open at least a year.