Bloomberg It’s been a big year for the companies that sell coffee, but not so much for the growers that supply them. That could start to change in 2019. Historically low prices for coffee beans in 2018 will likely reduce the incentive for farmers to expand supplies, said Rodrigo Costa, the US-based coffee director for Brazilian trading company Comexim. That ...
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Canada Goose climbs after store opens in Beijing
Bloomberg Canada Goose Holdings Inc rose 6 percent in early trading before US markets opened after the company opened its flagship store in Beijing over the weekend. The store had been delayed since December 15 amid escalating tensions between Canada and China following the arrest of Huawei Technologies Co.’s chief financial officer in Vancouver. The luxury jacket maker is expanding ...
Read More »India rule on e-comm giants may hurt shoppers
Bloomberg India’s new rules for foreign e-commerce platforms may be designed to protect local companies from Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc., but consumers are likely to suffer the collateral damage. Online marketplaces must treat all vendors equally by providing the same terms, India’s trade ministry said. In practice, this means barring e-commerce companies from forcing a seller to feature products ...
Read More »Sears may stay alive with rescue bid cobbled by Lampert
Bloomberg Sears Holdings Corp. got another chance at survival after Chairman Eddie Lampert put together a last-minute, last-ditch bid to buy the retailer out of bankruptcy. Lampert persuaded three lenders to finance the $4.4 billion offer, according to a statement from ESL Investments. The plan includes keeping 425 stores open and a $1.3 billion financing commitment, the statement said. Bank ...
Read More »Gap to close its major store in Manhattan
Bloomberg Gap Inc. plans to shutter one of its major New York stores next month. The clothing retailer, which said in November that it may close hundreds of underperforming Gap stores, will shutter a three-story location at 680 5th Avenue on January 20, the company confirmed in an email. Chief Executive Officer Art Peck also said last month that the ...
Read More »UK plans to double charge on plastic bags
Bloomberg The UK is planning to double the charge on disposable plastic bags issued by the country’s largest retailers to 10 pence as part of a drive to protect the environment. The fee will also be extended to all small shops, according to the plans published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The proposals are subject to ...
Read More »Amazon’s record holiday shows consumers’ spending appetite
Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc reported a record-breaking holiday season as shoppers loaded their online baskets with items from Echo speakers to Calvin Klein clothes, suggesting consumer optimism isn’t being deterred by a tumbling stock market. The internet retailer said “tens of millions of people worldwide†signed up for its Prime service, which offers free two-day shipping on millions of items as ...
Read More »Layoffs loom large as banks weigh funding for Sears bid
Bloomberg Bankers meeting to discuss financing for Sears Holdings Corp.’s impending bankruptcy erupted in disbelief when a headline crossed their smartphone screens. Its subject: them. A breaking news report said the bankers, gathered on October 11 at the Manhattan offices of law firm Weil Gotshal & Manges, were pushing to liquidate the American retail icon instead of saving it with ...
Read More »J&J’s tainted-talc risk expands as cancer trials triple in 2019
Bloomberg Johnson & Johnson paid a steep price this year for claims that its celebrated baby powder was contaminated with asbestos. Problem is, 2019 could be even worse. A jury ordered the company in July to pay $4.69 billion to 22 women who blamed the talc-based product for causing their ovarian cancer. The prospect of similar judgments helped erase $45 ...
Read More »Holiday shopping roars to a close amid US shutdown
Bloomberg “Sell†may be the chorus on Wall Street, but optimistic shoppers looking to fill the empty space under the country’s Christmas trees were out in full force during the season’s final shopping weekend. With Christmas, Americans streamed into brick-and-mortar stores on Saturday and Sunday looking for deals. The International Council of Shopping Centers predicted heading into the weekend that ...
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