Sales at Tokyo department stores fell 5.7 percent in February from the previous year to 142.2 billion yen, the Japan Department Stores Association said in a preliminary report Friday.

It was the biggest year-on-year decline since an 8.5 percent drop in March 1999 and reflects continued weak demand among large-lot customers, the association said.

Lack of floor space, due to store renovations, also contributed to the fall, it said.

"Fundamentally, there is no change in the severity of business conditions," an association official said.

Sales of clothing, the largest sales item, dropped 5.7 percent in February, the biggest drop since an 8.1 percent fall in July 2000. Demand for winter clothing was sluggish with the warmer weather.

Amid weak demand for furniture, sales of household goods plunged 26.6 percent, posting the sharpest decline since a 41.5 percent fall in March 1998.

Sales of personal goods, including accessories and handbags, rose 2.4 percent for the 16th consecutive monthly increase, helped by the effects of completed renovation work, the association official said.

Sales of sundry goods, such as watches, inched up 0.2 percent, rising for the first time in two months.

Food sales, the second-largest contributor to department store sales, dropped 2.8 percent for the third month of decline.

The report covers sales at 28 stores operated by 13 department stores in Tokyo's 23 wards.