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Bentonville, Ark., November 25, 2013 – Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) today announced that its board of directors elected company veteran Doug McMillon, 47, to succeed Mike Duke, 63, as president and chief executive officer, effective February 1, 2014. McMillon was also elected to the company’s board of directors, effective immediately. “This leadership change comes... Read more »

Interesting little tid-bit in The Home Depot’s recent SEC filing for the period ending August 4, 2013. Interconnected Retail – Our focus on interconnected retail is based on building a competitive platform across all commerce channels. As of the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2013, approximately one-third of our online orders were completed... Read more »

TORONTO–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Hudson’s Bay Company (TSX:HBC) (“HBC” or the “Company“) is pleased to announce that it has successfully completed its previously announced acquisition (the “Acquisition“) of all of the outstanding shares of Saks Incorporated (“Saks“) for US$16.00 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately US$2.9 billion, including debt. With the Acquisition, HBC creates... Read more »

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had declined moderately in September, decreased sharply in October.  The Index now stands at 71.2 (1985=100), down from 80.2 in September.  The Present Situation Index decreased to 70.7 from 73.5.  The Expectations Index fell to 71.5 from 84.7 last month. “Consumer confidence deteriorated considerably as the federal government... Read more »

Waterloo, ON- 2013-November-5 – Open Text Corporation (NASDAQ: OTEX) (TSX: OTC), a global leader in Enterprise Information Management (EIM), announced today that it has entered into an agreement and plan of merger (Merger Agreement) to acquire GXS Group, Inc. (GXS), a leader in business-to-business (B2B) cloud integration, pursuant to which GXS will become a wholly-owned... Read more »

Worries over jobs, the economy and fiscal policy uncertainty have left consumers spending cautiously, prioritizing long-term goals and improvement projects, according to the Chase Freedom Lifestyle index report released on October 30. Spending on home improvement and self-improvement saw year-over-year spending increases in Q3, while consumer electronics and office supplies saw the biggest declines in... Read more »

Publix Reports Third Quarter 2013 Results and Stock Price LAKELAND, Fla., Nov. 1, 2013 — Publix’s sales for the third quarter of 2013 were $7 billion, a 5.6 percent increase from last year’s $6.7 billion. Comparable-store sales for the third quarter of 2013 increased 4.1 percent. Net earnings for the third quarter of 2013 were... Read more »

Retail sales fell in September for the first time in six months, but the decline was credited to a drop-off in auto purchases.  Most U.S. retail sectors actually experienced broad sales gains during the month, according to the National Retail Federation, which reported that, excluding automobiles, gas stations and restaurants, retail sales grew a seasonally... Read more »

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 148,000 in September, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 7.2 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in construction, wholesale trade, and transportation and warehousing. Both the civilian labor force participation rate, at 63.2 percent, and the employment- population ratio at 58.6 percent,... Read more »