Hurricane Isabel disrupted US store sales of nonessentials but sent shoppers hunting for emergency supplies, Instinet Research said in its Redbook report today.
Sales at major retailers gained 2.6 per cent in the week ended September 20th compared with the same week a year ago, after rising 3.4 per cent in the preceding week, the report said.
Sales fell 1.3 per cent in September compared with August, the report said. The report said Isabel scared away shoppers and closed some stores, although sales at discounters of food, water and other emergency supplies rocketed.
Hurricane Isabel killed at least 28 people and cut power for over 10 million people after it tore through the mid-Atlantic region of the United States last Thursday.
The Redbook figures are compiled from a sample of same-store sales at general merchandise retailers representing about 9,000 stores.
Same-store sales measure revenue at stores open at least one year. The index is released weekly by Instinet Research, a division of Instinet, a Reuters-owned electronic brokerage.