US retail sales at discount, chain and department stores rose during the four retail weeks of February in the latest report showing an upturn in the US economy.
The Redbook Retail Sales Average rose 0.7 per cent in the four weeks ended March 2nd compared with the same period last month. Sales compared with the same week last year rose 4.3 per cent.
The increase is attributed to the unseasonably mild weather that drove sales of spring clothing.
The Redbook Retail Sales Average is a sales-weighted average of annual growth in same-store sales at discount, department and chain stores that report their results on a weekly basis.
The average is compiled from a sample of general merchandise retailers representing about 9,000 stores. Same-store sales measure revenues at stores open at least a year.
The Redbook Average is released weekly by Instinet Research, a division of Instinet, a Reuters-owned electronic brokerage.