The National Retail Federation, which represents department stores, discount retailers, drug stores and grocery stores, spent $480,000 in the first quarter to lobby on trade measures, immigration reform, food safety legislation and other issues.

Shares of Nordstrom Inc. hit a three-year low Thursday after the upscale retailer posted a sharp drop in June same-store sales and said it will likely miss its fiscal second-quarter forecast.

Shares of department stores dropped Thursday after retailers reported largely worse-then-expected same-store sales for June.

Among the earnings projection stories for Thursday, July 10, from AP Financial News:

Upscale department store chain Nordstrom Inc. on Thursday said it no longer expects to meet its profit forecast for the fiscal second quarter, citing lower profit margins and weak sales.

Upscale department store chain Nordstrom Inc. on Thursday said its same-store sales for June decreased 18.6 percent, but weak sales results prompted the company to warn it no longer expects to meet its quarterly earnings forecast.

Retailers, including Wal-Mart Stores, are posting solid same-store sales growth in June, as expected, as seasonal weather and tax rebate checks helped get consumers to the store.

(Reuters) - Retailers may have a challenging 2009 as sales at its domestic stores continue to fall and in the absence of a stimulus like this year's tax rebates, analysts at Morgan Stanley said, as they lowered their price targets and 2009 earnings estimates across the sector.

Retailers may have a challenging 2009 as sales at its domestic stores continue to fall and in the absence of a stimulus like this year's tax rebates, analysts at Morgan Stanley said, as they lowered their price targets and 2009 earnings estimates across the sector.

U.S. retailers, led by the discounters, are expected to post slightly better June same- store sales this week, thanks to seasonal weather and rebate checks that have made their way to cash registers, mostly for basic items such as gasoline and food.

By anyone's reckoning, it was a rough week.  Crude oil continued its relentless climb; banks and brokerages gave hints of more discouraging news; government data pointed to a weak economy; even strong companies like Nike, Oracle, and Research In Motion issued cautious guidance; and Federal Reserve policymakers, widely perceived as powerless to help, left interest rates unchanged.  But all week, even through the worst of the market's sell-offs, CNBC guests offered

To give investors an edge, CNBC asked the experts for their best trades now.

Most business news this week took a back seat to oil's relentless climb, but there were still some notable moments. And CNBC guests had plenty of stocks to recommend for worried investors.

Retailer Macy's reported a quarterly loss Wednesday as a difficult retail environment hurt sales and it incurred costs from a restructuring.

Many US retailers posted better-than-expected sales in April. However, with most consumers sticking to bargains or basics, don't expect an extended rebound in retail.