Chain store retail sales dropped significantly in the latest week as a result of high gasoline prices, ripple effects of Hurricane Katrina and increased consumer concern about the future of the economy, a retail report said on Tuesday.
Sales dropped 2.1 percent in the week ended September 17, compared with 0.2 percent decline the previous week the largest weekly dip since Dec. 6, 2003 when the index fell 2.5 percent, the International Council of Shopping Centers and UBS said in a joint report.
