Newsday from New York, New York • 59

v.v.v "BUSINESS" Major Hetailers June sales and percent change from. June, 1988 Retailer Sales Change Barclays Eyes Brooklyn For 1,000 Wall St. Jobs By Laura L. Castro Barclays Bank of New York is considering a shift of about 1,000 employees from its Wall Street offices to Brooklyn, borough economic development officials and developers have told New York NewBday. Bank officials have looked at the $1 billion MetroTech project in downtown Brooklyn as a possible Jsite for relocating part of its Wall Street operations, said Bruce Ratner, president of Forest City Ratner the joint developer of the office and research complex that broke ground last week.

Barclays Bank is preliminarily looking at the MetroTech site to move a part of their Wall Street operations, Ratner said. Barclays has a close business relationship with his firm, he said, because the financial institution provided $128 million in financing for One Pierrepont Plaza, another Ratner project in downtown Brooklyn. Brooklyn economic development officials and business leaders, many of whom asked to remain anonymous, say the bank is interested in leasing about 150,000 to 200,000 square feet for operations that would employ about 1,000 employees. Jonathan Rose, senior vice president of Rose Associates, the city-designated developer of the Atlantic Terminal site in Brooklyn said he was aware of Barclays interest in sites outside of Manhattan, including Brooklyn. It was unclear to the sources whether Barclays interest in downtown Brooklyn means it is looking at locations outside of the dty as well.

Barclays officials wouldn't comment. Barclays has its North American headquarters at 75 Wall spokeswoman Marion Controne said. Sources said the employees that may be relocated work at Barclays offices at 2 Broadway. Barclays also has a branch at 32 Court St. in Brooklyn that concentrates on business development in Brooklyn.

Barclays Bank of New York is a subsidiary of Barclays Bank, London. Watergate to Be Sold Complex lent name to political scandal Retail Sales Rise Slightly Reuter. The nations mqjor retailers yesterday reported that store sales rose modestly in June, but analysts said the months solid performance may be the last in an increasingly lackluster year. While Wall Street analysts said the June gains will help retailers salvage respectable profits in the second quarter, the rest of the year looks bleaker as recession fears spread, especially in comparison with 1988s strong results. High consumer confidence and a resurgence of apparel sales boosted sales during the second half of last year.

Retailers will be up against big numbers in the second half. It's going to be harder for them to improve margins, said retailing analyst David Williamson of Advest Group Inc. On average, retailers reported 8am e-store sales increases of up to 5 percent last month, with double-digit growth for specialty womens apparel retailers and slower advances for general merchandisers. The increases are not adjusted for inflation, now running at an annualized rate of about 5.5 percent. An exception to the weak trend at big stores was Bentonville, Ariz.

-based Wal-Mart Stores the nations third-largest retailer, which reported a comparable-store sales hike of 10 percent in June. Among specialty-apparel retailers, such as Gap Inc. and The Limited same-store sales increased 13 percent and 12 percent, respectively. But all retailers will face tougher comparisons as the year advances, especially if concerns about a U.S. recession become rampant, analysts said.

Although consumer confidence in the economy remains mostly positive, analysts said high interest rates and uncertainty about the economy have made shoppers shy away from expensive items such as cars and appliances. Were seeing a continued shill away from big-ticket items to soft lines. The less-expensive, discretionary merchandise Bee ms to be. catching attention, said retail analyst Terence McEvoy of Fahnestock Co. Despite the tepid June gains, analysts said second-quarter earnings may rise 8 percent to 12 percent.

Washington (Reuter) The advertisement might read: FOR SALE Elegant hotel, apartment land and offices, view of Potomac River, rich but checkered past, asking $71 million. The Watergate complex, which gave its name to the scandal that ended Richard Nixons presidency, is being sold by its owner, the British Coal Boards pension fund. The real estate firm handling the sale declined to comment on the reasons for the sale yesterday, but the pension funds American business manager told the Washington Post that investment opportunities were now better in countries. With its river view and distinctive, serrated architecture, the Watergate is one of Washingtons poshest addresses despite the scandal. The hotel was completed in 1965 and is adjoined by a shopping mall featuring trendy stores, an elegant French restaurant and that are home to cabinet secretaries and senators.

A failed attempt to plant an eavesdropping device in a Democratic Party office in the Watergate The Watergate, Richard Nixon's AP Photo which gave its name to the scandal that ended presidency, could fetch up to $71 million. in 1972 and the subsequent coverup led to Nixons resignation two years later. The fund hopes to sell the hotel, an office building, a lease on another building, the land under three nearby cooperative apartments and retail space in a shopping mall. The Bale is being handled by Morgan Stanley Realty, a subsidiary of Morgan Stanley Group Inc. of New York.

A spokesman declined to reveal the asking price, but Washington brokers said it could range from $28 million to $71 million. Yves St. Laurent Stock Is Too Fashionable NEWSDAY, FRIDAY. JULY 7. 1989 NY BUSINESS51 reorganization since buying back most of its perfumes business from U.S.-based Charles of the Ritz in 1986.

But it needs the cash from the flotation and from a recent 187-million capital increase to cover debts incurred by buying out most of the YSL stake held by Italian financier Carlo De Benedetti. Benedettis holding company, Cerus, cut its 49.9-percent stake in YSL to 15 percent in June. YSL aims to use the new injection of cash to strengthen its international presence, particularly in North America and Southeast Asia. Accessories are another priority, with a range of boutiques planned in Paris, New York and other fashion capitals. regarded as a sign of things to come in the competitive French fashion world.

Family-run fashion houses are being rapidly bought out by entrepreneurs with their eyes on exploiting their reputations more profitably. The special structure adopted allows Berge to choose a successor to himself and to Yves St Laurent, whose creative work is the inspiration behind the company. Berge. and St. Laurent have worked together since 1961, when the young designer emerged from under the mantle of his mentor, the late Christian Dior.

The YSL group, which had a 1988 net profit of $9 million, has been undergoing number of shares requested to prevent speculative bids, Dufour-Kervem said. Yesterdays enthusiastic reception was a good start for company chairman Pierre Beiges decidedly cautious venture on the bourse, carefully publicized beforehand with full-page advertisements in French and international newspapers. Beige hopes to protect the company from takeover bids and avoid the kind of bitter power battle seen at luxury group LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton. I was directly inspired by what had happened at LVMH, Berge said. LVMH for me was an example of how not to do things." The YSL flotation is Paris (Reuter) The flotation of shares in French fashion legend Yves St.

Laurent was postponed yesterday after so many would-be investors rushed to buy a stake that the offering was oversubscribed. The shares offered in Groupe Yves St. Laurent, the first French fashion house to seek a stock-exchange listing, were more than 250 times oversubscribed, broker Francois Dufour-Kervem said. The issue, representing slightly more 10 percent of YSLs share capital, was rescheduled for Monday. The offer price of 853 francs ($133) would remain but investors would be required to place deposits equal to the.