New York City (March 5, 2009) Americans remained focused on groceries and other necessities in February, resulting in another month of sales declines for many merchants. But the results were not as steep as Wall Street expected.

Wal-Mart Stores led the discount store category. The chain’s February same-store sales jumped 5.1%, excluding fuel sales. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, on average, expected a rise of 2.4%.

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