honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Thursday, February 5, 2009

BUSINESS BRIEFS
Costco same-store sales declined 2% in January

Advertiser news services

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Costco expects its profit for the quarter ending in February will miss Wall Street estimates because of poor sales.

BLOOMBERG NEWS SERVICE FILE PHOTO | August 2008

spacer spacer

ISSAQUAH, Wash. — Costco Wholesale Corp. said yesterday its profit for the quarter ending in February will "substantially" miss Wall Street estimates because of poor sales.

January sales in stores open at least a year, a key retailer metric known as same-store sales, declined 2 percent, comprising flat domestic sales and a 9 percent decline overseas, hurt by the strengthening dollar.

Total sales for the month dipped to $5.10 billion from $5.11 billion a year ago.

The retailer expects earnings for its fiscal second quarter to miss the estimate of 70 cents per share.

It also said it will not provide earnings guidance for the rest of the fiscal year.

"General economic conditions have negatively affected our sales, primarily in nonfoods, and merchandise margins," Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti said in a statement.

Costco operates 550 warehouses and plans to open up to 15 new stores by the end of August.


HOUSE PANEL SAYS SEC FOILING PROBE

WASHINGTON — House lawmakers yesterday accused the Securities and Exchange Commission of impeding their probe into the agency's failure to uncover the alleged $50 billion Bernard Madoff fraud.

The clash between lawmakers and high-ranking SEC officials at a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing came after the man who waged a decade-long campaign to alert the regulators to problems in Madoff's operations denounced the agency for its inaction.


TIME WARNER SEES 4TH-QUARTER LOSS

LOS ANGELES — Media and entertainment giant Time Warner Inc. reported a fourth-quarter loss, hurt by a previously expected $24.2 billion writedown for its cable, publishing and AOL assets.

The company predicted flat earnings in the year ahead as it takes on major restructuring charges amid a declining advertising market. Its cable unit, meanwhile, also reported a loss and said it plans to cut 1,250 jobs, or about 2.6 percent of the unit's workforce, as its business slows.