WASHINGTON, March 27 (UPI) -- U.S. retail receipts dropped 1.7 percent in the week ending Saturday, a trade group in Washington said.
The International Council of Shopping Centers-Goldman Sachs weekly sales report said sales fell week to week, but rose 1 percent over the same week of 2012.
The trade group said Tuesday that an abnormally cold bout of weather curbed consumer demand for spring goods, especially apparel.
While receipts climbed from the same week a year earlier, the year-over-year increase was the slowest it has been in more than three years.
Weather Trends International said the average temperature nationwide was 15.2 degrees Fahrenheit cooler than the same week in 2012 and 4.5 degrees cooler than the long range average for the week.
