Irmãos Martins estão de saída da Martifer

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Vou interromper a participação até ao final de Agosto. Vou para as merecidas férias e assim o caldeirão tambem descansa a vista, de tanto ler

Boas semanas ou boas férias para todos!

No. 1 retailer's July is weaker than analysts expect, reflecting the end of the government program.


NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Thursday reported a 3% increase in July sales at U.S. stores open at least one year, less than analysts expected, and indicated that gains from the government's stimulus program may have run their course.

"Wal-Mart's clear price leadership position continues to meet the needs of our customers in a difficult economy," said Wal-Mart Chief Executive Eduardo Castro-Wright, in a prepared statement.

Analysts interviewed by Thomson Reuters had expected a 3.4% jump in sales for all Wal-Mart (WMT, Fortune 500) Stores in the U.S., compared to the 1.9% gain in July 2007.

Wal-Mart's same-store sales had slowed down from June, when the store reported a 5.8% gain, attributed in part to the U.S. government's stimulus checks.

Castro-Wright said the impact from the stimulus checks had dried up by July, and that many of the shoppers are holding off on spending until payday.

"With the end of the stimulus checks, we know consumers are spending more cautiously, and we continue to see a pronounced paycheck cycle at the end of the month," said Castro-Wright.

The company's wholesale club unit, Sam's Club, posed a 7.3% sales gain including fuel sales for July, compared to a gain of 4.9% the prior year.

But without fuel, which set a nationwide average price record, Sam's Club sales jumped 3.5% in July, down from a 5.1% sales gain a year earlier.

Like earlier this summer, the CEO said that groceries and flat-screen televisions were driving sales.

Wal-Mart is the No. 1 retailer, in terms of annual sales. The company said its net sales increased 9.4% in July to $30.16 billion, compared to $27.58 billion for July 2007.

For the first half of its fiscal year, net sales increased 9.6% to $196.48 billion, compared to $179.27 billion in the same period last year.

Another major retailer, the warehouse club operator Costco Wholesale (COST, Fortune 500), reported a 10% jump in July same-store sales, beating the 7.8% gain projected by analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters. That compared to a gain of 7% in July 2007.