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US April retail data mixed, worries remain

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Date: Thursday 08 May 2008

LONDON (ShareCast) - US supermarket giant Wal-Mart and discount chain Costco saw sales rise in April as consumers sought bargains amid a backdrop of more expensive oil and a falling housing market.

Wal-Mart saw like-for-like sales increase 3.2% in April while discount retailer Costco saw a solid 8% sales gain, which beat forecast of a 6.1% increase.

However, Wal-Mart said it was cautious over the outlook for May.

More grounds for US economic gloom came from department store JC Penney, which saw same-store sales fall 1.7% in April.

In the same month, like-for-like sales at clothes chain Gap fell by 6%.

Like-for-like sales at JC Penney’s competitor Target rose by 3.1%, short of analysts’ expectations of a 4.5% rise and those of the store itself, which had forecast a mid-single-digit increase.

Shares in plastic clogs maker Crocs advanced after it said first quarter revenue climbed by 40% from the same period a year ago to $198.5m, ahead of analysts’ estimates.