NATCHEZ &8212; Sales tax figures remain strong in Natchez, according to revenues the city received from the state earlier this month.

In all, the city received $443,293 this month, up 16.25 percent from the $381,320 it received the same month in 2005.

That&8217;s down from a fiscal year high of $487,726 in November. That&8217;s because, since revenues from the state are received two months behind the actual sales, reflect an influx of Hurricane Katrina evacuees.

However, revenues received this month are down only 1 percent from the $447,891 the city received last month.

While neither Wal-Mart nor Kmart are allowed by their corporate offices to comment on local sales figures, an official with another large retailer said he&8217;s not surprised by the latest sales tax figures.

&8220;Sales have been good,&8221; said Barry Loy, director of retail operations for Supermarket Operations, which owns five grocery stores in the Miss-Lou.

&8220;We&8217;re running probably a 10 percent increase from this time last year,&8221; Loy said. &8220;I don&8217;t if that&8217;s due to the number of evacuees we have or something else.&8221;

One thing&8217;s for sure, Loy said &8212; &8220;no matter how the economy looks, you have to eat.&8221;

But those who don&8217;t deal in such staples as groceries also said sales have been pretty steady.

Darby Short, co-owner of Darby&8217;s Gifts in downtown Natchez, said the store&8217;s sales volume was healthy in the pre-Christmas period this month&8217;s numbers reflect. But it didn&8217;t end there, Short said, since the post-Christmas sales have kept their figures &8220;up pretty well.&8221;