WASHINGTON (MNI) – Analysts are expecting a rebound in retail
sales, as the back-to-school spending season starts in mid-July and runs
through to mid-September, a report by the International Council of
Shopping Centers said Thursday.
The ICSC report said it is projecting sales during the
back-to-school spending season to increase by 5.4%, which would be the
strongest since it was up 6.4% in 2005.
“Based on arithmetic alone, the expected July jump in BTS spending
could be extremely strong,” said Michael Niemira, chief economist and
director of research for ICSC.
“Layer on some fundamental improvement in the consumer economy,
including some pickup in the pace of earnings growth, and we should see
a strong 7.6% rise for July,” Neimira added.
Neimira projected the pace of BTS sales to slightly slow to 5.7% in
August, and begin to level off in September with a 3.0% increase.
The U.S Commerce Department segments retail sales categories, which
the report said are important for BTS purchases.
The segments are family clothing, shoes, electronics, and books,
the report said.
“With the 2009-2010 academic year having recently ended for some 76
million children and adults enrolled in the nation’s nursery schools
through colleges, retailers are already looking ahead to the
Back-to-School spending season,” the report added.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
[TOPICS: M$U$$$,MAUDS$]
