New York — The outlook for a strong spring grew dimmer for the country's big retailers Thursday as they reported generally disappointing results for February.
While many value-oriented retailers and some clothing stores such as Talbots did well, other merchants most notably department stores and apparel retailers, including Gap languished amid slowing consumer spending.
It's clear that consumers, who have been spending cautiously since last June, continue to retrench, analysts said.
"This is the new reality that we are going to most likely see going forward," said Michael Niemera, vice president of Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi Ltd.
February is not a major contributor to retailers' profits, but the month does indicate consumer psyche. Stock market volatility and high energy prices continue to plague Americans.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported Thursday that new claims for state unemployment insurance fell last week but remained at a level suggesting that demand for workers has eased. The government said initial applications for jobless benefits declined by 4,000 to a seasonally adjusted 370,000 for the week ending March 3.
Department stores in general had disappointing results last month, with Federated Department Stores, May Department Stores Co., Nordstrom and Dillard's falling short of Wall Street expectations.
Kmart Corp. said sales at stores open at least a year, known as same-store sales, gained 3.3 percent.
Same-store sales at Topeka-based Payless ShoeSources were down 1.8 percent. Wal-Mart posted a same-store sales increase of 4.3 percent.
Meanwhile, Sears, Roebuck and Co.'s results fell below expectations. The retailer had a same-store sales decline of 2 percent in its domestic business, while total domestic sales were down 1.5 percent.
The apparel sector had mixed results. Talbots had a robust 9.3 percent increase in same-store sales. Gap said its same-store sales plummeted 11 percent, while Limited's same-store sales were unchanged.
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