Week-Over-Week Retail Sales Fall 4.7%

Chicago ShopperTrak’s National Retail Sales Estimate reported on Tuesday that retail sales for the week ending Jan. 17 declined a sharp 7.8% as compared to 2008. On a week-over-week level, sales for the week ending Jan. 17 slipped 4.7% as compared to the previous week ending Jan. 10.

Both yearly and weekly GAFO retail sales dropped sharply as harsh weather conditions throughout the country forced many consumers to stay home last week.

“Last week is an annually slow shopping period as consumers continue to experience a bit of a hangover following the holiday season,” said Bill Martin, co-founder, ShopperTrak. “This, added to the inclement weather and the continued poor economy, heavily contributed to negative sales levels last week,” he said.

Martin added that he expects retail sales will most likely continue to slump over the coming week as well.