• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, November 3, 2011

While worries about the economy didn’t keep shoppers out of stores in October, it did slow their spending. Monthly results for the nation’s largest retailers were generally positive, but more subdued than many expected. At Target, for example, same-store sales rose 3.3% for the month, and at Macy’s, they gained just 2.2%, the smallest year-over-year growth rate in recent months, as warmer-than-usual weather early in the month slowed coat sales, and snowy weather in the final weekend kept shoppers home.

Kantar Retail reports that same-store sales came in 3.9% higher in October, weaker than the 5.7% same-store sales gain last month but stronger than the 1.7% gain in October of 2010. The International Council of Shopping Centers, which tracks a slightly different group of stores, says its index rose 3.7%.