December sales numbers expected to be dismal

Which major retailer had the bleakest holiday season? We'll find out Thursday when major chain stores report December sales figures. Nearly every category -- including apparel, department stores and youth-oriented chains -- is expected to post significant same-store sales decreases for December compared with a year earlier, according to Thomson Reuters estimates.

"Only good thing to say about December is that it's over," Brian Tunick, a JPMorgan retail analyst, said in a report this week.

Luxury chains are again expected to suffer double-digit declines. According to estimates, Nordstrom will post a 13% sales decrease in December compared with a year earlier and Saks Inc. will see a 10% decrease. J.C. Penney is expected to post a 10.3% decline in December compared with a year earlier while Kohl's is estimated to record a 5.5% year-over-year drop.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will probably be one of the few stores to do well. The discount giant is expected to record a 2.8% sales increase in December compared with the year-earlier period.

All told, the 35 chain stores that Thomson Reuters tracks are expected to post a combined 1% sales decrease. Excluding Wal-Mart, that number worsens to a 4.8% estimated decline.

-- Andrea Chang