June rains, penny-pinching dampen retail sales

By Aarthi Sivaraman

NEW YORK (Reuters) - June sales fell for most U.S. retailers as the plunging job market and cool, rainy weather dampened interest in summer shopping for consumers, triggering concern about the back-to-school season.

The June results marked 10 straight months of falling sales at stores open at least one year -- the longest losing streak since 2000, Thomson Reuters data showed.

More declines are expected, with the International Council of Shopping Centers forecasting a July same-store sales drop of about 5 percent.

"We continue to have an exceptionally stressed consumer," said Craig Johnson, president of retail research firm Customer Growth Partners. "Almost across the board, there's evidence the green shoots are few, if any, among a very brown field."

The long recession, growing job losses and tight access to credit have made shoppers seek deep discounts and buy only essential items like groceries and toiletries.

But some retailers stuck to their earnings forecasts, and a few even raised outlooks after spending months cutting inventories and costs.

That helped support some stocks. The Standard & Poor's Retail Index was up 0.2 percent on Thursday, while the broader S&P 500 gained 0.6 percent.

June same-store sales fell 4.9 percent overall, according to Thomson Reuters data. More than half of the retailers polled missed expectations, with teen apparel chains and department stores posting the heaviest declines.

Among clothiers, Gap Inc, Limited Brands Inc, American Eagle Outfitters Inc and Abercrombie & Fitch all reported double-digit drops.

In the department store sector, same-store sales were down 8.9 percent at Macy's Inc and 10 percent at the higher-end Nordstrom Inc chain.

Same-store sales fell 6.2 percent for discounter Target Corp, while analysts expected a 5.6 percent decline.

But Target said its quarterly earnings would meet or top Wall Street expectations, and its shares rose 3.5 percent.

Costco Wholesale Corp posted a 6 percent drop in June same-store sales, in line with expectations, on tepid demand for cameras and air conditioners.

Monthly retail sales reports have been a barometer of the overall economy. But Wal-Mart Stores Inc's decision in May to stop disclosing this data has made it tougher to judge the industry's overall performance each month, analysts say.

BACK-TO-SCHOOL FOCUS