NEW YORK–Mass merchants, once again, outshined department stores.
Department stores continued to drag down the retail sector, posting an average same-store-sales decline of 5.6 percent for the month of May.
Gottschalks and Kohl’s posted the steepest declines of the group, with same-store sales down 8.6 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively.
Home remained weak at J.C. Penney, with a 4.4 percent same-store sales drop in May.
By contrast, mass merchants and warehouse clubs were the stars of the month, recording an average same-stores sales gain of 3.6 percent.
Wal-Mart, with a 4.4 percent comparable-store sales increase, continues to eclipse archrival Target, whose same-store sales rose 3.8 percent.
Wal-Mart attributed some of the gain to shoppers spending with their tax stimulus checks.
Overall, “May came in better than expected,” said Michael Niemira, chief economist and director of research for the International Council of Shopping Centers.
“But, it is very clear that consumers are spending in a conservative manner as the lift largely came from an increase in sales in the wholesale, drugstore and discount sectors.”