Abercrombie & Fitch's Downward Spiral Hits 10 Straight Quarters

Aug 28 (Reuters) - Teen apparel retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co's same-store sales declined for the tenth straight quarter as it struggled to attract customers who held back discretionary spending amid wage cuts and fewer jobs.

The company's shares were down 6.5 percent before the bell.

Abercrombie and rivals Aeropostale Inc and American Apparel Inc have struggled to keep teen shoppers from moving to cheaper and trendier "fast fashion" chains such as Forever 21, Inditex's Zara and Sweden's H&M.

Abercrombie's same-store sales decreased 7 percent in the second quarter ended Aug. 2 - more than the 4.1 percent dip expected by analysts polled by research firm Consensus Metrix.

U.S. same-store sales fell 5 percent.

Net sales decreased 6 percent to $890.6 million.

Net income rose to $12.9 million, or 17 cents per share, from $11.4 million, or 14 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the company earned 19 cents per share.

Analysts on average had expected a profit of 11 cents per share on sales of $909.2 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Abercrombie Shares, which have risen 34 percent this year closed at $44.83 on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday. (Reporting by Ramkumar Iyer in Bangalore; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)