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December 10, 2014 The holiday season started strong at Costco where U.S. same store sales advanced 7 percent during the company’s first quarter ended November 23. Total company sales during the period increased 7 percent to nearly $26.3 billion from $24.5 billion.  Membership income grew slightly slower, advancing 6 percent to $582 million.  Same store... Read more »

December 15, 2014 Following a four-point uptick last month, builder confidence in the maket for newly built single-family homes fell one point in December to a level of 57 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI), released today. “Members in many markets across the country have seen their businesses improve... Read more »

December 9, 2014 The national level of customer satisfaction fell 0.7% in the third quarter of 2014 to 75.6 on a 100 point scale, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), pointing to weak spending growth for the fourth quarter.  This is the third consecutive quarterly decline in customer satisfaction for the country as... Read more »

December 11, 2014 Discounting throughout the month shifted consumer spending behavior Holiday shoppers took advantage of deep discounting and early sales to lift retail spending in November, the National Retail Federation said today.  Not including automobiles, gasoline stations or restaurants, retail sales increased 0.6 percent seasonally-adjusted over October and 3.2 percent unadjusted over November 2013. ... Read more »

December 9, 2014 Higher same store sales and its purchase of Saks Inc. last year helped Hudson’s Bay Co. post a smaller quarterly loss in the third quarter. The company had a $13 million net loss and profits of $116 million, both improvements from the same time last year.  Same-store sales rose 1.7% in the... Read more »

December 4, 2014 Momentum continues to build at Kroger where the company elevated expectations for its fourth quarter performance after a better than expected showing in the third quarter. The company reported a 5.6 percent increase in identical store sales, extending to 44 the number of quarters in which it has posted a positive number. ... Read more »

December 8, 2014 The Conference Board Employment Trends Index (ETI) increased in November.  The index now stands at 123.24, up from 122.8 (a downward revision) in October.  This represents a 6.1 percent gain in the ETI compared to a year ago. “The Employment Trends Index increased for the 11th straight month in November, and recent... Read more »

December 3, 2014  November posts large gain following flat October California, Florida and Texas show strong gains along with MSAs New York, Los Angeles and Seattle Online advertised vacancies rose 170,200 to 5,253,900 in November, according to The Conference Board Help Wanted OnLine (HWOL) Data Series.  The October Supply/Demand rate stands at 1.77 unemployed for... Read more »

December 5, 2014 As the acquisition of Family Dollar Moves closer to resolution, would-be acquirers Dollar Tree and Dollar General maintain widely differing views on the superiority of their respective offers and the opinion of federal regulators. The latest developments in the ongoing Family Dollar affair occurred December 5 when Dollar Tree and Dollar General... Read more »