Irene hits department stores in August; Macy’s still beats Street, Kohl’s and J.C. Penney fall short

New York City -- Macy’s reported that its same-store sales rose 5% in August, beating estimates. The retailer said sales would have been higher by 1.5% points without the impact of Hurricane Irene. Industry analysts had warned that the storm would impact department stores and specialty retailers the most as consumers focused on buying generators and other emergency and recovery items versus back-to-school and discretionary products. Macy’s said that its sales also were hurt by about 130 Irene-related store closings, But the chain said sales over the past three days have been strong and it expects Irene’s negative effect