ICSC/Goldman & Redbook Report Strong Retail Sales

Store sales edged higher in the October 4 week, up 0.1 percent for a plus 3.9 percent year-on-year same-store pace vs plus 3.6 percent in the prior week. Cool weather helped sales of fall apparel in the week. Looking back at September as a whole, ICSC-Goldman is calling for a very strong year-on-year gain of 5 to 6 percent.

Both ICSC-Goldman, and now Redbook, report strong sales in the October 4th week, a week where cool weather boosted demand for fall apparel. Redbook's same-store sales tally is up 5.4 percent in the week for a 1.1 percentage point gain from the prior week. But looking back at September as a whole, Redbook, unlike ICSC-Goldman, sees weakness vs August. Individual chain stores will post their September results on Thursday.