Weekly retail sales edge upward

New York City The latest survey from the International Council of Shopping Centers recorded a slight rise of 0.5% in chain store sales for the week ended July 4.

On a week-over-week basis, sales climbed 0.1%.

"Sales for the industry were uneven in June as the first half of the month was softer than the second half," said Michael Niemira, ICSC's chief economist. "Dollar stores and stores offering a wide array of staples continued to perform best throughout the entire month."

ICSC forecast June sales, excluding Wal-Mart Stores, to be down about 4.5%, compared with its prior estimate of a decline of 5%.