Liz Claiborne Inc reported a deeper-than-expected quarterly loss on Wednesday, sending its shares down 9 percent, as the lingering recession kept many shoppers from buying the company's clothing and accessories.

The owner of the Juicy Couture, Kate Spade and Lucky Brand chains said its second-quarter net loss had widened to $82.1 million, or 87 cents a share, from $23.2 million, or 25 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the loss was 48 cents a share. This compares with the analysts' average forecast of a loss of 39 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.

Net sales fell 29 percent to $684 million.

The results reflect the challenges of turning around underperforming businesses as consumer spending and mall traffic remained at depressed levels compared with last year, Chief Executive William McComb said in a statement.

Like other apparel companies, Liz Claiborne has been hit hard in the recession as retailers place fewer orders to keep inventories lean and shoppers cut back on nonessential purchases.

Sales at its retail stores open at least a year fell 17 percent in the second quarter, hurt by declines across all brands.

For the third quarter, Liz Claiborne sees same-store sales declines in the 15 percent to 25 percent range at its Juicy Couture, Lucky Brand and Kate Spade chains.

The company said it planned to save an additional $100 million in costs by further streamlining activities.

The cost-cutting efforts will focus primarily on further distribution center consolidation, outsourcing of certain corporate functions, consolidation of support and production staff, and store closures at its Mexx business.

Liz Claiborne expects to complete most of these actions by the end of the year.

The company's shares were down 36 cents at $3.65 in trading before the market opened.

(Reporting by Dhanya Skariachan in Bangalore; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)