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The American shopper is still feeling "stressed" by inflation, but the effects aren't being felt evenly across categories, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said Tuesday. "We've got some customers who are more budget-conscious that have been under inflation pressure now for months," he told CNBC's "Squawk Box." "That sustained pressure in some categories, I think, is something customers are having to deal with as we approach Christmas." Shoppers are being more selective about their purchases, McMillon said, and skipping some electronics, for example, in favor of staples. As the nation's largest grocer, Walmart has used low-priced groceries to attract customers — including wealthier ones.

☆ Maine Lobster Controversy Pinches Biden’s State Dinner With Macron
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Kristina Peterson | Jon Kamp | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON—It wasn’t the cheese selection that became the most contentious item on the menu at President Biden’s first state dinner Thursday night with French President Emmanuel Macron . Instead, the butter-poached Maine lobster landed the White House in hot water. The state’s lobster fishery has been at the center of legal and regulatory fights over whether its equipment harms endangered North Atlantic right whales—a political battle that began boiling over after two conservation groups warned consumers against buying Maine lobsters. Last month, Whole Foods Market paused its sales of the state’s iconic crustacean, saying it doesn’t meet the grocer’s sustainability standards.

☆ CEOs from Kroger and Albertsons say they’re worried about competition from Amazon, but the e-commerce giant barely makes up 1% of US grocery sales
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The CEOs of Kroger and Albertsons say their proposed merger will help them defend against Amazon. But Amazon's market share is a fraction of larger players, including both Kroger and Albertsons. But market share data suggests that a combined Kroger and Albertsons would be much larger by sales than Amazon the day the merger takes place. For all of its moves in grocery, Amazon commanded just 1.2% of sales, according to Euromonitor. The entire US grocery market represented $1.27 billion in sales last year, according to Euromonitor.

☆ Kroger hikes forecast after stronger grocery sales top estimates
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Melissa Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Kroger on Thursday raised its forecast for the year after stronger third-quarter sales topped Wall Street expectations and inflation continued to push up the prices shoppers pay for milk, eggs and other groceries. Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen said the company is attracting shoppers by offering value. At Kroger, identical sales rose 6.9%, excluding fuel, in the third quarter. For the full year, Kroger now anticipates adjusted net earnings to range from $4.05 to $4.15. Kroger announced in October that it plans buy its competitor, Albertsons , in a deal valued at $24.6 billion.

WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Skeptical lawmakers from across the political spectrum questioned executives at grocers Kroger Co (KR.N) and Albertsons Companies Inc (ACI.N) on Tuesday about their planned $25 billion merger amid concerns the tie-up could boost already-high food prices. The deal will be reviewed by the Federal Trade Commission to ensure it is legal under antitrust law. Stores under the Albertsons umbrella include Balducci's, Haggen, Kings, Safeway, Star Market, Tom Thumb, United Supermarkets and Vons, among others. The companies have also been criticized for a plan to give Albertsons' shareholders a $4 billion dividend payment. Senator Tom Cotton, a conservative Republican, criticized Kroger for the company's aprons with a design that appeared to support gay pride.

☆ Kroger, Albertsons CEOs defend grocery tie-up, say deal won't hurt competition
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Melissa Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The battle over whether grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons should be allowed to combine is heating up. "I just don't see less competition going forward," Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen said at the hearing by the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights. Kroger announced plans in October to acquire Albertsons in a deal valued at $24.6 billion. They emphasized that the proposed deal comes at a time when groceries are taking up more of American families' budgets. Food prices have surged as inflation hovers near four-decade highs.

☆ Kroger and Albertsons want to create a grocery empire. The last supermarket mega-merger backfired
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

With the FTC’s blessing, Haggen, a small supermarket chain in the Northwest with just 18 locations, bought 146 of the former Albertsons and Safeway stores, including the one where Martinez worked. In an weird twist, Albertsons bought back dozens of the same stores it previously sold to Haggen in bankruptcy court — at a lower price. Now she worries Kroger will divest Ralphs as part of its merger with Albertsons in a repeat of the Haggen 2015 deal. To address antitrust concerns that the merger will stifle competition in local markets where they overlap, Kroger and Albertsons plan to divest stores. In 2015, Haggen bought a Vons grocery store (owned by Safeway at the time) in Carpinteria as part of the Albertsons and Safeway divestitures.

☆ A new player in the grocery software space just raised $10 million to compete in the nearly $150 billion online grocery segment. Check out the 13-page pitch deck that helped Vori secure the deal.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Vori raised a $10 million Series A for its grocery-inventory software aimed at indepedent grocers. Vori, an inventory-management startup, pitches itself as a solution for those smaller grocers — a position that just helped it raise $10 million. Vori's inventory software provides inventory services to grocers that might only have a few stores, Hill said. "Our customers have been our most active and enthusiastic investors," Hill said. Check out the 13-slide pitch deck that Vori used to raise its $10 million Series A round:

☆ A short seller betting against this UK grocer says its shares could plunge by over 40%
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

There's more pain to come for investors in British grocery technology company Ocado , according to short seller Chris Dale. The chief investment officer at Kintbury Capital expects Ocado's shares to fall a further 45% from Wednesday's close of £6.60 down to about £3.75 ($4.52) a share. The short interest in Ocado has risen to more than 4% of its stock in recent months after a two-year lull. AHL Partners, AQR Capital, Gladstone Capital and D. E. Shaw & Co. are the other firms currently holding a significant short position in Ocado. Earlier this month, Ocado's shares soared by 32% after a new deal to construct six CFCs for South Korea's Lotte Shopping was announced.

☆ Meals company Takeaway, grocery delivery firm Getir in European partnership
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

AMSTERDAM, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Meals delivery company Just Eat Takeaway (TKWY.AS) on Thursday announced a European partnership with online grocer Getir. Under the partnership, Takeaway said, Getir's groceries will be listed on Takeaway's platform and can be ordered via its smartphone app but will be delivered by Getir couriers. Amsterdam-based Takeaway is Europe's largest meals ordering and delivery company, while Istanbul-based Getir is the largest of several privately-held online grocery companies that deliver a small selection of common supermarket items within an hour. The partnership will be launched in Germany next week, the companies said, and expanded to Britain, Spain, Italy and France this year. Reporting by Toby Sterling Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ This Thanksgiving, What Prices to Expect at Your Grocery Store
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Jaewon Kang | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Pennsylvania grocer Karns has been more aggressive with discounting non-holiday items like seafood to draw customers. Get ready to fork over more for this year’s Thanksgiving meal. American families will spend about 14% more this year on their holiday dinner thanks to higher prices of turkey, flour, eggs and other staples, according to data from Information Resources Inc. Increasing costs of ingredients, production and transportation—coupled with extreme weather and avian influenza outbreaks across the U.S. that affected millions of birds—could add up to what IRI projects to be the most pricey Thanksgiving meal in recent memory.

☆ Grab pares losses by 24% in third quarter; deliveries segment breaks even earlier than expected
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Singapore-based ride-hailing and food delivery giant Grab narrowed losses and broke even in its deliveries segment for the first time since 2012, during the third quarter. The company posted an adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization loss of $161 million, a 24% improvement from the adjusted EBITDA loss of $212 million in the same period a year ago. Grab offers a range of services including ride-hailing, food delivery, package delivery, grocery delivery and mobile payments through GrabPay. Food deliveries also reported positive adjusted EBITDA in the third quarter, two quarters ahead of its previous guidance. "We achieved core food deliveries and overall deliveries segment-adjusted EBITDA breakeven ahead of guidance while narrowing our overall loss for the period significantly.

☆ Walmart and Target’s quarterly results lay bare the retailers' stark differences
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Melissa Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Groceries account for 56% of Walmart's annual revenue, compared with just about 20% at Target, according to company filings. More customers turn to Walmart to fill out the bulk of their grocery lists, said Neil Saunders, managing director of retail advisory firm GlobalData. A man pushes his shopping cart past bread for sale at a Walmart SuperCenter store in Rosemead, California. Brown | AFP | Getty ImagesLow prices vs. Fun findsWalmart is known for its mantra of "everyday low prices" and its focus on value has become synonymous with its name. About 21% of sales at Target come from unplanned purchases, according to GlobalData research from before the pandemic.

☆ Analysts see one retailer winning this holiday and taking share as Target struggles
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Michelle Fox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

In contrast, Target reported an earnings miss Wednesday, with profit that fell by about 50% in its fiscal third quarter. "General merchandise softness continues to be linked to Covid-winner categories (CE, home, and apparel basics), although the category's performance also improved sequentially." Walmart's general merchandise sales fell at a low-single digit pace, its chief financial officer, John Rainey, said on the earnings conference call Tuesday. For Target, the softness in general merchandise is taking its toll. The retailer has made some progress clearing through its excess inventory, but the fiscal thir quarter brought higher-than-expected markdowns, Target said.

☆ Walmart is crushing Target by luring wealthier shoppers and dominating groceries
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Avery Hartmans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Meanwhile, Walmart sales were up over 8% in the quarter and the retailer raised its full-year outlook. Walmart said its success was driven by two factors: its robust grocery business, and an influx of higher-income shoppers in its aisles. That trend began earlier this year as rising inflation nudged wealthier shoppers away from their usual grocery stores and toward Walmart locations across the country. And as upper middle-class shoppers trade down to Walmart's grocery aisles, they may get curious about the rest of Walmart's offerings, Wall Street analysts predict. Walmart is winning the grocery warsBut it's not just wealthier shoppers that are driving Walmart's dominance over Target — it's groceries, too.

☆ Walmart will report earnings before the bell — here's what to expect
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Melissa Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Customers outside a Walmart store in Torrance, California, US, on Sunday, May 15, 2022. Walmart on Tuesday will report its fiscal third-quarter earnings before the bell, as the retail giant caters to inflation-squeezed customers and gears up for the peak of holiday season. To drum up sales, Walmart, Amazon , Target and other retailers have kicked off the holiday season early. Walmart threw its own sales event in October to coincide with Amazon's second Prime Day-like sales event of the year. The company's shares closed Monday at $138.39, bringing Walmart's market value to about $375.62 billion.

☆ Inflation dampens festive spirit as German retail faces slump
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Rachel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BERLIN (Reuters) - German shoppers are tightening their purse strings this festive season, the HDE retail association warned on Thursday, forecasting the strongest slump in Christmas sales since 2007 as double-digit inflation weighs on consumer purchasing power. REUTERS/Michele Tantussi/File PhotoIn price-adjusted terms, retail sales in the crucial November-December period are forecast to drop by 4% year on year, the HDE said. The HDE’s survey of 500 companies found that a little more than half expected this Christmas sales period in Germany to be worse than last year, while 21% feared it would be considerably worse. In nominal terms, sales are expected to rise 5.4% year on year in the final two months of 2022, the association said. However, Genth warned that economic difficulties could deny German retailers the luxury of being able to offer discounts.

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Tesla, Meta, DR Horton and more
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Peter Schacknow | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Meta Platforms (META) – The Facebook parent's shares rallied 4.3% in premarket trading after the company announced it was laying off 13% of its workforce, or more than 11,000 workers. DR Horton (DHI) – The home builder's stock slid 3.1% in the premarket after it missed top and bottom line estimates for its latest quarter. Walt Disney (DIS) – Walt Disney tumbled 7.4% in the premarket after missing top and bottom line estimates for its latest quarter. Affirm Holdings (AFRM) – Affirm Holdings plunged 12.2% in premarket trading after the buy-now-pay-later firm reported a wider-than-expected quarterly loss. Axon Enterprise (AXON) – Axon rallied 8.5% in premarket trading after the Taser maker reported better-than-expected profit and revenue for the third quarter.

LONDON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Some European retailers this week forecast or reported better full-year sales after working to keep prices low to attract cash-strapped shoppers although others, including Marks & Spencer (MKS.L) and Adidas (ADSGn.DE) warned on profit. Many consumers have turned to cheaper private-label products, boosting sales for retailers like Dutch grocer Ahold Delhaize and Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF.L), as they face a prolonged cost-of-living crisis. On Wednesday, Ahold raised its annual outlook for the third time this year, expecting low-double-digit earnings per share growth versus a prior mid-single-digit guidance. Carrefour said it would step up its expansion in e-commerce, open more discount stores and cut costs as it detailed its new turnaround strategy, . LUXURY GAPHaving less disposable income has meant many shoppers are holding back on buying mid-market clothes and other discretionary items.

☆ Factbox: Australia Inc roiled by raft of cyberattacks this year
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] A woman uses her mobile phone as she walks past in front of an Optus shop in Sydney, Australia, February 8, 2018. The data exposed included home addresses, drivers' licences and passport numbers. AUSTRALIAN CLINICAL LABSAustralian Clinical Labs Ltd (ACL.AX), one of the country's largest pathology providers, said unit Medlab suffered a breach that exposed data of about 223,000 patients. TELSTRAAustralia's largest telecoms operator Telstra (TLS.AX) suffered what it called a small data breach, which exposed data of about 30,000 current and former employees dating back to 2017. Compiled by Jaskiran Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-PhillipsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: Australia Inc roiled by raft of cyberattacks since late 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] A woman uses her mobile phone as she walks past in front of an Optus shop in Sydney, Australia, February 8, 2018. AUSTRALIAN CLINICAL LABSAustralian Clinical Labs Ltd (ACL.AX), one of the country's largest pathology providers, said unit Medlab suffered a breach that exposed data of about 223,000 patients. TPG TELECOMAustralia's No.2 internet service provider TPG Telecom (TPG.AX) said it had been notified of unauthorised access to a hosted exchange service that hosts email accounts of up to 15,000 business customers. CBACommonwealth Bank of Australia CBA.AX said its Indonesian unit, PT Bank Commonwealth (PTBC), had been hit by a cyber incident involving unauthorised access of a web-based software application used for project management. IPHAustralian intellectual property services provider IPH Ltd (IPH.AX) said it had detected unauthorised access to a portion of its IT environment, compromising information including administrative documents and some client documents.

NEW YORK, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Home Depot Inc (HD.N) retail workers voted against forming a union at a location in Pennsylvania, the U.S. National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said late on Saturday. More U.S. companies including Starbucks Corp and Amazon.com and grocer Trader Joe's Inc have seen some workers petition to form unions. Home Depot did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for a comment regarding the outcome of the voting. Home Depot Workers United sought to unionize to address concerns regarding wages, staffing and training, said Vincent Quiles, interim president of Home Depot Workers United and a receiving associate at Home Depot. The independent union in mid-October filed an unfair labor practices charge against the retailer for engaging in unlawful surveillance and interrogating workers at the Philadelphia location, according to Home Depot Workers United.

☆ Washington State Commissioner Temporarily Blocks Albertsons Dividend Payout
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Jaewon Kang | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A Washington state court commissioner temporarily blocked a $4 billion dividend that Albertsons Cos. had intended to pay its shareholders next week, announced when the grocer agreed to merge with rival Kroger Co. in a $20 billion deal last month. Commissioner Henry Judson for the King County Superior Court in Washington said during a hearing Thursday that he will grant a temporary restraining order to stop the planned dividend. The ruling came after the state’s attorney general filed a lawsuit this week against the companies to block the payment, which was initially scheduled for Nov. 7.

read moreIt also shows Woolworths' grocery dominance being challenged: its September quarter sales showed higher inflation than at Coles, which reported results on Oct. 26, while Woolworths food sales went backwards compared to higher supermarket sales at Coles. In the same period, Australian food prices for Woolworths rose 7.3%, compared to 7.1% at Coles. Woolworths food sales were below consensus forecasts and Coles "appears to have closed the sales gap somewhat", Jefferies analysts said in a research note. Australian food sales "did not improve ... despite rising inflation", UBS analysts noted. Including all divisions such as discount department store and its business-to-business unit, group sales rose 1.8% to A$16.4 billion, Woolworths said, roughly in line with analyst forecasts.

☆ Australian grocer Woolworths' quarterly sales rise on higher prices
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 3 (Reuters) - Australian grocer Woolworths Group (WOW.AX) said on Thursday first-quarter sales rose 1.8%, helped by higher prices of products and a jump in sales in its domestic business-to-business (B2B) segment. Retailers have been raising prices to cope with higher fuel and ingredient costs. Total group sales for the country's biggest supermarket chain rose to A$16.36 billion ($10.39 billion) in the first quarter and narrowly beat a Jefferies estimate of A$16.33 billion. In Australian B2B, quarterly sales surged 26% to about A$1.20 billion, which helped offset a 0.5% drop in the company's biggest segment, Australian Food, and an 8.1% fall in sales from New Zealand. ($1 = 1.5746 Australian dollars)Reporting by Harshita Swaminathan and Navya Mittal in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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