August US retail sales expected to show weakness

Major U.S. retailers are expected to post softer August sales as consumers spent less on back-to-school items, with the results helping to set analysts' expectations for the all-important holiday season.
Top retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc, Target Corp and Gap are due to report monthly sales reports for stores open at least a year on Thursday.
Industry forecasters have taken a grim view of the period overall, with the International Council of Shopping Centers expecting back-to-school sales at chain stores to rise 1% this year, their smallest gain since 2001.
Analysts also expect retailers to report a 1% rise in August sales at stores open at least a year, worse than a 3.1% gain a year ago, according to Thomson Reuters research.
A handful of retailers including Kohl's and J.C. Penney, issued same-store results on Wednesday, with each posting declines that were smaller than expected, but highlighting an overall trend of reduced spending.
"We're not seeing any indication that the consumer has more money or feels better," Kohl's Chairman Larry Montgomery told a Goldman Sachs retail conference.
Penney cited a difficult back-to-school season, and added September same-store sales would likely fall in the mid- to high-single digit%ages because of disruption from hurricanes.
Retailers were pressured this year as higher fuel and food costs, a housing slump, rising unemployment and tighter credit have curbed consumers' discretionary income.
Some investors have bet the recent ease in oil prices would alleviate pressure on consumers' budgets, but retail executives have not embraced that view.
"While weather was a bright spot in August, we believe that the slowing economy negatively impacted traffic and sales," said Deborah Weinswig, an analyst at Citi Investment Research.