The figures added to what so far has been a disappointing summer for retailers. Sales started off slow in early June and never picked up, with the exception of a blip of buying around Father's Day. July is traditionally a time for retailers to run clearance sales, but there were many more markdowns this year than usual, according to John Morris, an analyst with Gerard Klauer Mattison in New York. The clearance sales started a week earlier and they went a week longer, Morris said. Departmental Loss Department stores for the most part had disappointing results.
Industry analysts focus on same-store results in determining how well a retailer is doing.
J.C. Penney, based in Plano, Texas, suffered a 3.6 percent same-store sales drop. Specialty retailers also had a difficult month. The San Francisco-based company's business was particularly disappointing at its Old Navy stores. Luxury department store Harrods announced it would cut its ties with the British royal family because they don't spend enough there. The world-famous bastion of wealth said it would pull down Queen Elizabeth and her heir Prince Charles's warrants to supply goods from its storefront at the end of the summer, and would not seek their renewal when they expire late next year.