The International Council of Shopping Centers-UBS Retail Chain Store Sales Index rose 1.0% in the week ended June 9 from the week before, on a seasonally adjusted, comparable-store basis. The rise follows a 0.5% decline a week earlier. "Sales were mixed for the first week of the June fiscal month with the healthiest week-over-week gain in four months, but the year-over-year pace was a tad softer and locked in a modest 2% range," said Mike Niemira, chief economist at ICSC who compiles the index. "For the month of June, sales are tracking about a 2% year-over-year pace - not appreciably different from its May gain of 2.5%," Niemira said. On the year, chain store sales were up 2.1% in the week ended June 9 compared with a rise of 2.3% in the prior week.