Lousy Retail Sales Will Delay Recovery

Overall sales jump doubles expectations, calms consumer spending fears

(NEWSER) - Big retailers showed unexpected signs of life in February, beating weak sales predictions to inject some hope into the market. Wal-Mart led the way, posting a 2.6% same-store increase, beating its own predictions of flat-to-2% growth. Overall, same-store sales climbed 1.9%, with more than half of retailers beating predictions, the Wall Street Journal reports. More»

(NEWSER) - Retailers are fighting to survive in 2009, some more successfully than others. Some 73,000 stores could close their doors by year’s end. Forbes breaks down which chains are shrinking the fastest:

• Ann Taylor: Catering to working women isn’t so great when unemployment’s at 8.1%. Expected sales drop: 17.3%
• Saks: November’s 70%-off sale didn’t help, and it’s already been forced to lay off 1100. Expected sales drop: 26.2%

Fall twice as far as anticipated

(NEWSER) - Retail sales fell more than twice as much as analysts predicted in December, thanks to mounting job losses and reduced credit, Bloomberg reports. Sales fell 2.7%, extending the longest string of declines on record to 6 consecutive months. Purchases excluding automobiles slid 3.1%. “Consumers are pulling back,” said one economist. “The first half is going to be bleak in terms of consumer spending and economic activity.” More»

Each default brings widespread fallout

(NEWSER) - Stores across the country are closing their doors, the New York Times reports, victims of a downturn in consumer spending. Retailers are often heavily leveraged, and as the economy falters banks are tightening credit. Several chains, including Sharper Image, have declared bankruptcy; others like Footlocker, Ann Taylor, and Zales are closing stores to stay afloat. “You have the makings of a wave of significant bankruptcies,” said a former Kmart executive. More»

Signs of life from the consumer help stocks rebound

(NEWSER) - Positive retail reports helped get stocks back on track today after recent declines, the Wall Street Journal reports. Home Depot, Target, and Saks saw smaller-than-expected declines in quarterly profit, while discount chain TJX reported a 31% gain. The Dow rose 82.60 to close at 9,217.94. The Nasdaq gained 25.08, closing at 1,955.92, and the S&P 500 added 9.94 to settle at 989.67. More»