Tag: North America

Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Kroger triumph in Top 100 retailers list

Posted by | Jul 2, 2007 | |

Retail giant Wal-Mart, home-improvement chain Home Depot and grocery chain Kroger have topped the list of Stores Magazine Top 100 Retailers ranking.

The annual report, conducted by Stores, the monthly magazine of the National Retail Federation, ranks companies in all segments by revenue.

Bentonville, AR-based Wal-Mart again ranked No. 1 with 2006 revenues of USD 348.65 billion, an 11.7 percent increase over the previous year. Wal-Mart’s revenues were greater than those of the next five largest US retailers combined.

Home Depot and Kroger retained their second and third spots, respectively. Despite a troubled year, which saw the departure of CEO Robert Nardelli, Home Depot gained 11.4 percent in total revenues in 2006. Kroger’s 2006 sales rose 9.2 percent over 2005 to USD 66.11 billion.

Costco came in at No. 4, up from last year’s fifth place, thanks to increasing its private-label offerings with a new line of food conceptualized by Martha Stewart. Costco’s revenues increased 13.6 percent in 2006 to USD 60.15 billion.

Mass merchants Target and Sears came in fifth and sixth. Target advanced a spot in the ranking with a revenue increase of 13.1 percent to USD 59.49 billion. Sears dropped two spots despite a 7.9 percent revenue increase to USD 53.01 billion.

Drug stores are also represented in the top 10. Walgreens rose one spot to No. 7 after aggressively adding freestanding store locations and focusing on front-end merchandise. CVS, which took ninth place and is a new entry to the top-10 list, acquired Caremark Rx in an attempt to upgrade pharmacy services.

Other companies in the top 10 include Lowe’s, which dropped one spot to No. 8, and Safeway, which retained its spot at No. 10.

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Canada Post: No basic domestic letter rate increase in 2008

Posted by | Jun 29, 2007 | |

Canada Post Corporation announced that there will be no increase in the domestic basic letter rate in 2008.

Under the price-cap formula approved by the federal government in 2000, basic letter rate increases, when warranted, will not exceed 66.67 per cent of inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index from May prior to the last increase to May of the current year. Increases will be implemented no more than once a year, in January, and announced no later than July 1 in the year before the increase goes into effect in the Canada Gazette Part I.

The Consumer Price Index from May 2006 to May 2007 shows an increase of 2.2 per cent negating an increase in the domestic letter rate next year. Price changes for the remaining regulated domestic Lettermail and USA and International letter-post products continue to be market-based and proposed increases are scheduled for implementation on January 14, 2008.

Canada Post announced in the Canada Gazette Part 1 the following proposed rate adjustments.

– $0.03 increase to $0.96 for letters, cards and postcards up to 30g destined for the USA;
– $0.05 increase to $1.60 for letters, cards and postcards up to 30g to foreign destinations.

Canada Post’s proposed rates for a 30-gram letter to the USA and other International destinations compare favorably to the rates other countries charge to send a similar piece of mail to Canada. It costs $2.64 from Great Britain, $3.05 from Germany and $1.80 from Australia to send a 30-gram letter to Canada. The cost to mail a 30-gram letter from the USA to Canada is $1.15.

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USPS launches historic infomercial

Posted by | Jun 28, 2007 | |

The U.S. Postal Service used a bit of history to make history when it debuted its first infomercial on June 16.

The thundering hooves of the Pony Express led viewers through a series of modern-day business success stories in a 28-minute video that will run throughout the summer on 20 different channels, including CNBC, ABC Family and The Discovery Channel.

“The main focus on the infomercial is to talk to our customers and show them how we’ve made our products and services easier to use,” said Lisa Bobb-Semple, program manager at USPS. “It highlights a number of customers from a variety of backgrounds who have used our products and services with success.” Each story highlights a service available at www.usps.com that has made shopping and shipping easier. Interspersed with each story is a bit of USPS history showing how the Postal Service has been on the cutting edge of information transportation ‹ from the early days of the stagecoach to having the largest fleet of alternative fuel vehicles in the world today.

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ABX Air Inc. Receives Unsolicited Indication of Interest from ASTAR Air Cargo Holdings

Posted by | Jun 28, 2007 | |

ABX Air, Inc. today acknowledged the receipt of an unsolicited indication of interest from ASTAR Air Cargo Holdings, LLC to acquire all of the outstanding shares of ABX Air for $7.75 per share in cash. No formal offer has yet been made.
The ABX Air Board of Directors, consistent with its fiduciary duties and commitment to enhancing value for shareholders, will evaluate this indication of interest as well as any formal offer actually made. The Company will respond in due course and neither the Board nor ABX Air management will make any other comment on the indication of interest until then.
Goldman, Sachs & Co. is acting as financial advisor to the Company. O’Melveny & Myers is serving as legal counsel.
ABX Air is a cargo airline that operates out of Wilmington, Ohio, and 17 hubs throughout the United States. In addition to providing airlift capacity and sort facility staffing to DHL, ABX Air provides charter, maintenance and package handling services to a diverse group of customers. ABX is the largest employer in a several-county area in southwestern Ohio.

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UPS receives additional tax breaks for Worldport expansion

Posted by | Jun 28, 2007 | |

United Parcel Service Inc. again has received tax breaks from Kentucky to help offset some of the costs of the USD 1 billion expansion project under way at its Worldport air cargo hub at Louisville International Airport.

UPS was approved by the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority for USD 2.5 million in state sales tax refunds during its June 28 meeting in Frankfort. The refunds are related to construction materials purchased as part of the Worldport expansion project.

At yesterday’s KEDFA meeting, the package-delivery giant submitted the second of what will be three applications for such tax credits, according to Mike Mangeot, public relations manager for UPS in Louisville.

The company was approved for USD 15 million in sales tax refunds a year ago. The third application is planned for next year.

UPS announced its Worldport expansion plans in May 2006. UPS received preliminary approval for USD 31.6 million in tax incentives for up to 10 years when the project was announced. Those incentives were based on job creation. The expansion of Worldport is expected to create 1,284 full-time jobs and 3,787 permanent part-time positions.

UPS already is one of the largest employers in Kentucky, with more than 20,000 workers.

The project began last summer and is on schedule, Mangeot said. The first phase is expected to be finished in 2009 and the entire project in 2010.

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