Retailers post mixed June sales results

NEW YORK — Shoppers, enticed by heavy discounts and armed with rebate checks, spent more freely in June, helping to lift many retailers’ sales. The outlook for the back-to-school season remains tough, though, as consumers confront high gas and food prices, a slumping housing and tighter credit. As the nation’s retailers reported June sales today, discounters and wholesale club operators including Wal-Mart Stores Inc., BJ’s Wholesale Club Inc. and Costco Wholesale Corp. reported better-than-expected figures as consumers limited purchases mainly to groceries and other necessities. The reports showed that some rebate money made their way to apparel stores, like Children’s Place Retail Stores Inc., though sales generally remained sluggish at mall-based apparel stores, including Limited Brands Inc., Gap Inc., and Wet Seal Inc. For the full story visit http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-retail11-2008jul11,0,3143318.story