Retail sales heated up during the third week of the holiday shopping season but will likely cool off in the coming days, making this season weaker overall than last year's, says a Chicago-based consulting group.

Shoppers flocked to the stores during the second-to-last full week of the holiday season, boosting sales at U.S. chains 12 percent from the previous week, when wintry ice and snow had put a damper on shopping.

The surge in business for the week that ended Dec. 14 gave retailers their highest weekly volume of the season so far - $30 billion in sales, said retail consultant ShopperTrak RCT, which tracks weekly U.S. retail sales.

Consumers spent $6.3 billion on Saturday, Dec. 14, alone, making it the second-strongest shopping day of the season to date, behind the $7 billion spent the day after Thanksgiving, ShopperTrak said.

Some of the biggest chains are reporting sluggish sales compared with last year, however.

Target Corp. said sales have been "well below plan" for both the week ending Dec. 14 and the month to date. Federated Department Stores Inc., the owner of Macy's and Bloomingdale's, is still calling for its November and December comparable-store sales to be at the low end of a range from flat to down 2.5 percent. And at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the nation's largest retailer, sales last week rose at the low end of the company's forecast of 3 percent to 5 percent.

"So much of the holiday season is riding on a late spurt," said Michael Niemira, lead consultant for ShopperTrak's National Retail Sales Estimate. "While sales for the weekend were somewhat encouraging, sales for the entire week were somewhat softer than what retailers might have hoped."

Overall, sales for the season will likely fall short of last year's, with December sales projected to be down 5.4 percent from December 2001, ShopperTrak said.

"Consumers went into the season very cautious, and they don't want to spend more than they did last year," said Britt Beemer, chairman and founder of America's Research Group in Charleston, S.C. He said shopper traffic over the last weekend fell 20 percent below the numbers he'd anticipated.

"It's clearly an example of the consumer this year saying, 'I can give fewer presents,' and that's exactly what they're doing," he said. "They want value, and they don't want to spend money unless they have to."

Consumers are concerned about their jobs and lack of pay raises, he said. Also hurting retail sales this season are factors such as six fewer shopping days than last year and a paucity of new or hot toys, electronics and fashion looks.

Retailers are hoping for a last-minute surge.

"We're expecting this week to be the busiest week" of the season, said Marie Toulantis, chief executive officer of BarnesandNoble.com

Nearly one in four Americans are expected to complete their holiday buying during the last week before Christmas, according to the 2002 American Express Retail Index, which surveyed 800 heads of households in October.

More than one in five shoppers said they would finish gift buying on Christmas Eve, the index said. Eight percent of the shoppers, mostly men, said they would start shopping during the last week.

Last-minute shoppers tend to frequent mass merchandisers above all other categories of stores, with department stores and toy stores the second and third most popular destinations, American Express said.

This year, more Americans are setting budgets for the holidays - 65 percent of those surveyed - with consumers expected to spend an average of $1,656 per household, the index showed. To stay on budget, consumers are looking for bargains, and retailers have responded with discounts.

At the Pied Piper in the Village of Cross Keys in Baltimore, racks of outfits were on sale this week at 30 percent off. Sales so far have been comparable to last season's, said Lynne Kness, manager of the upscale children's boutique.

"That's good, considering the economy," she said.

But Pied Piper's sales people aren't just sitting back waiting for shoppers, especially with a shorter season this year. The 37-year-old store has built up a loyal following by taking extra steps, such as calling repeat customers when new merchandise arrives.

It's that kind of personal attention, combined with unique merchandise, that most small shops are counting on to compete in a difficult economy.

"I'm not out to compete" with the chains, said Nancy Lattmann, owner of L'Apparenza in Lake Falls Village in Mount Washington, an upscale women's apparel boutique. "My things are not up and down the street and in every drugstore. This is where you get service. It's more special. We are growing at the pace I expected us to grow. I think things are turning around."