Department-store operator Macy's Inc. on Friday said it will shutter nine underperforming stores, which collectively employ nearly 900 staffers, the latest indication of a weak retail environment. The department stores are in Indiana, Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah and were all acquired when Macy's bought department-store operator May Co. in 2005.

Macy's integration of May Co. department stores has been bumpy. The company has faced disappointing sales and resistance from shoppers in some markets where the Macy's name replaced local favorites it absorbed as part of the May acquisition. Further, a weak housing market, persistent credit problems and high food and gasoline prices are curbing U.S. consumers' discretionary spending.

"While the decision to close stores is difficult, it is necessary that we do so selectively in locations with declining sales and where we have been unable to identify sufficient growth opportunities," said Terry J. Lundgren, company chairman, president and chief executive.