Wal-Mart January same-store sales up 0.5 percent

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc on Thursday reported a lower-than-expected 0.5 percent rise in its January sales at U.S. stores open at least a year, citing unfavorable weather and gift card redemptions that were below expectations.

Last month, Wal-Mart said sales at its U.S. stores during the first two months of its fourth quarter had run about 2 percent ahead of a year ago, and it expected "to run at a similar rate for the January four-week sales period."

(Reporting by Nicole Maestri; Editing by Derek Caney)