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Holiday discounts crimp retailers’ profits
NEW YORK — Many retailers delivered solid sales gains for December, but heavy discounts needed to get shoppers to buy exacted a high price, clouding the holiday shopping season. Merchants had to mark down coats and other gifts to get shoppers to buy in a challenging economy. A mild start to winter also didn’t help, […]
Trade deficit shrinks for fourth straight month
WASHINGTON — The U.S. trade deficit narrowed in October to its lowest point of the year after Americans bought fewer foreign cars and imported less oil. The shrinking trade gap boosted growth over the summer and may do so again in the final three months of the year. But economists worry the trend could reverse […]
TVs are hot sellers this holiday season
NEW YORK — In an unexpected twist, TVs are topping many Christmas shopping lists this year. Wal-Mart says TVs are among the top gifts people are putting on layaway at its 3,000-plus U.S. stores during the holiday season. The Westinghouse 46-inch LCD HDTV that was on sale for half off at Target for $298 was […]
Syms and Filene’s unit seek bankruptcy protection
SECAUCUS, N.J. — Discount retailer Syms Corp. and its subsidiary Filene’s Basement have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and plan to liquidate their operations. Syms acquired Filene’s Basement out of bankruptcy protection in the spring of 2009 for $62.4 million, but struggled to turn the chain around. They own and run 46 stores mostly […]
Holiday season may be down for U.S. retailers
NEW YORK — It looks like retailers will have to work extra hard to keep this holiday season from turning into a bah humbug. A new forecast indicates that sales growth will likely not be as high as last year and that shoppers won’t be hitting the stores as much. Retail sales for the November […]
Back to school is a test for teen retailers
NEW YORK — Teens are heading back to school, but it’s the retailers catering to them that are getting the first test. They’re hoping their expanded selections of funky tee shirts and hip-hugging jeans will attract students like Dale Gibson, 15, who struggles to find trendy clothes in their stores. Ditto for Danielle Martinez, 14, […]
Back to school is a test for teen retailers
NEW YORK — Teens are heading back to school, but it’s the retailers catering to them that are getting the first test. They’re hoping their expanded selections of funky tee shirts and hip-hugging jeans will attract students like Dale Gibson, 15, who struggles to find trendy clothes in their stores. Ditto for Danielle Martinez, 14, […]
Consumers gloomy but their spending says otherwise
WASHINGTON — Economists have advice for anyone worried that consumers are too fearful to keep spending: Look at what they’re doing, not what they’re saying. A survey of consumer confidence shows that Americans were spooked early this month by the standoff over the debt ceiling, a downgrade of U.S. long-term debt and a swoon in […]
Wal-Mart, Home Depot boost profit outlooks
NEW YORK — Consumers may not be confident, but the stores that sell to them certainly seem to be. Wal-Mart and Home Depot, two of the nation’s largest retailers and bellwethers of the U.S. economy, on Tuesday joined a string of other merchants that have boosted their profit outlooks for the year despite a flow […]
Retailers report solid sales gains for July
NEW YORK — Many U.S. retailers posted solid sales in July as deep discounts and sweltering heat drove shoppers to air conditioned malls. But analysts worry that momentum won’t continue through the back-to-school shopping season. Despite a flow of bad economic news that kept consumer confidence shaky, a wide range of merchants that reported their […]
Retailers to bring fresh produce to 1,500 places
WASHINGTON — Michelle Obama’s campaign against childhood obesity moved a step forward Wednesday with the announcement that Wal-Mart and other retailers plan over the next five years to open or expand 1,500 stores in areas without easy access to fresh fruit, vegetables and other healthy foods. “Make no mistake out it. This is a big […]
U.S. retailers post strong June sales
NEW YORK — Colossal sales lured consumers into stores last month, but what’s going to keep them shopping during the slow economic recovery is anyone’s guess. Consumers who were enticed by warmer weather and deep discounts of up to 80 percent on summer merchandise helped many retailers including Target and Costco deliver robust revenue gains […]
