Report: Chain Store Sales Flat

New York City As consumer spending continues to slow down, Redbook Research reported Tuesday that U.S. chain store sales remain sluggish.

Sales for the week ending March 1, 2008, rose a paltry 0.1%, compared to the same time frame a year ago. Similarly, February sales increased a mere 0.5%, vs. February 2007.

However, February sales did increase 1.3% compared to slower sales in January 2008.

The Johnson Redbook Retail Sales Index is a sales-weighted index of year-over-year same-store sales growth based on large U.S. general merchandise retailers.