Solid showing in a slow month

Los Angeles: Shoppers turned out at US malls in January to redeem holiday gift cards and check out winter sales, spending carefully but sufficiently to help retailers clear their shelves before the spring buying season.

In a solid showing for a typically slow month, major chain stores posted a 4.2 per cent sales increase in January compared with the same month last year, according to Thomson Reuters.

The results handily beat analysts' expectations of a modest 2 per cent rise. January is considered by many retail experts to be the least important month of the year as stores unload their winter and holiday items.

The months ahead, when retailers roll out spring and summer apparel and accessories, will provide a better gauge of how retailers will fare this year, they said.

"There were no real surprises in January. I have seen a consistency of performance by a number of retailers month after month delivering" strong sales, said Michael Brown, a partner in the retail practice at consulting firm A.T. Kearney.

"This report shows some good tailwinds for 2012."

Industry watchers said sales were helped by gift-card redemption and heavy promotions by merchants, who were pushed by a relatively mild winter in many parts of the country to heavily slash prices on cold-weather apparel. Top performers were a mixture of high- and low-end stores. Action-sports chain Zumiez led the way with a 10.8 per cent bump.

— Los Angeles Times