Research >> Economics
ICSC Chain Store Sales rose by 0.2% in Oct 20 Wk
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The ICSC‐Goldman Sachs (ICSC‐GS) chain store sales index for the week ending October 6 rose by 0.2% from the prior week and its year‐over‐year momentum improved modestly to 2.8% from 2.4% in the prior week. The ICSC‐GS consumer tracking survey found that overall customer traffic weakened during the past week compared with the same week of the prior year, but there were pockets of improvement at department stores, wholesale clubs, electronics stores and drug stores.
According to Weather Trends, Inc. (WTI) the U.S. average nationwide temperature was 1.1°F warmer than last year and 1.5°F above normal. WTI observed that the past week ending Saturday "started off mild but the first shot of very cold air plunged southward into the nation at midweek bringing the first snow of the year to parts of the Rockies and N. Central States. The sudden shock to cold weather will have sent shoppers to the stores seeking out outerwear, hats, gloves, sweaters, furnace filters, space heaters and boots." As that cold air pushed eastward it helped fall apparel demand through the Midwest by the end of the week.
Meanwhile, the price of regular‐grade gasoline at the pump—blended for its clean‐air standard—surged in California as a result of a regional shortage in gasoline (due to a power failure on October 1 at a refinery in Southern California). According to AAA, the average price of regular‐grade gasoline in the Los Angeles‐Long Beach area was a record $4.703 on October 8—which was up 52 cents from the prior week and up 23% from the same week of the prior year. California, as a whole, had an average price of $4.668 a gallon, which was 22% higher than the national average. Costco ran out of gasoline in Southern California. At California Gov. Jerry Brown’s request, the California Air Resources Board granted refineries the ability to shift to its winter‐blend gasoline earlier than scheduled (October 31) to help alleviate the shortage.
Posted: October 23, 2012 Tuesday 07:45 AM