TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said that this year it will create more than 22,000 jobs in the U.S. in a variety of management and line positions as it expands stores and opens new ones.

On Thursday, the day before the annual meeting, the Bentonville, Ark., the retailing giant said in a statement that as part of the plan it would create more than 1,000 jobs in each of several states: Arizona, California, Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, South Carolina, Utah and Virginia.

Last October, Wal-Mart /quotes/comstock/13*!wmt/quotes/nls/wmt (WMT 48.32, +0.07, +0.15%) said it would open or expand 142 to 157 stores during fiscal 2010.

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Due to customer growth, Aldi looks set to open an Atlanta-area distribution centre in America. The facility will hopefully use a space of 482,000 sq ft, and will also add 299,000 sq ft in the future. Commencement of the plan depends on local government approval.

Another eighty stores are planned for America this year. The chain seeks to continue expanding through Florida and Tampa, with another ten stores opening in Florida alone. Aldi's stores are mainly in the eastern half of the country, where the chain opened its first store in Massachusetts this year. Aldi hopes to expand into Texas in 2010.

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Dollar stores are becoming increasingly popular with middle- and upper-class consumers as the recession drags on, according to new analysis from The Nielsen Company. Nielsen research shows that dollar stores are outpacing other CPG retail channels among shoppers of all income levels.

According to the analysis, 18% of high income shoppers spent more at dollar stores during the second half of 2008 than they did during the second half of 2007. This growth surpassed the 6% of middle-income shoppers who increased their dollar store spending and even the 8% of low-income shoppers who spent more at dollar stores during the second half of 2008, writes Retailer Daily.

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Edward Jones apparently didn't get the memo that there's a recession going on and that the financial markets have tanked.

The St. Louis-based investment brokerage has big retail expansion plans for the Valley, plus further growth at its campus in Tempe. The slump hasn't derailed those efforts.

"We have identified this as a great opportunity to serve more clients," said Andrea Feeney, a department leader at the Tempe campus who is working on the Valley expansion.

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The supermarket Wm Morrison said yesterday it would open small shops for the first time as the economic downturn gave it scope to speed up its expansion.

Marc Bolland, chief executive, said the group had identified more than 100 locations for new stores and had halted a £1bn share buyback to "preserve its firepower". The recession has weighed heavily on commercial property values and Morrisons said it wanted "maximum financial flexibility" to go shopping for stores.

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Who’s still opening retail locations in this difficult economy? Once again following Apple’s example, Microsoft Corp., for one, has decided to open a chain of retail locations.

Interestingly, the software behemoth has hired an exec from Wal-Mart, the retail behemoth, David Porter, to oversee its entrance into the retail biz. How will the Microsoft stores be different? Details are few so far, but instead of genius bars, there will be guru zones (or something) in the store. Instead of an Apple logo and ultra-stylish decor, there will be... a pomegranate and cinder blocks? Time will tell.

Buffalo Wild Wings is also planning expansion in 2009, a rarity in the chain-restaurant world these days. Last year, the company opened 67 restaurants, bringing the total to 567 in 39 states. During 2009, the company is planning on increasing its number of restaurants by about 15 percent, or maybe about 85 locations.

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Turkish low-cost retailer BIM - known in the trade as “the Turkish Aldi” - aims to open forty stores in Morocco this year and invest 110 million lira (£55 million) as part of its current aggressive expansion. This is largely on the back of predictions that hard discounters will ultimately fare well in the global economic downturn. BIM has added that lower raw material costs would help maintain a “normal, acceptable” fourth quarter profit margin after a drop in the third quarter which concerned analysts.

At Is Invest, analysts said that higher operating and financial expense due to foreign exchange loss and interest expenses caused the lower bottom line in 4Q08 and 4Q07, adding that low prices make BIM the firm least affected in Turkey during the financial crisis.

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Save-A-Lot Food Stores said Thursday it is opening three new stores in New Orleans this week.

Save-A-Lot, which touted its involvement in the rebuilding of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, said the three stores would create 100 new jobs for residents.

Save-A-Lot said it is able to expand because it specializes in offering “extreme-value,” or cheaper groceries.

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The Super de Boer supermarket group booked net profit of €29m in 2008, almost three times the year-earlier figure.

But analysts in the Financieele Dagblad pointed out that the earnings were influenced by one-offs. Operating profit rose from €21m in 2007 to €25m.

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Minneapolis (March 3, 2009) Target Corp. announced Tuesday the opening of 27 stores, including its first two locations in the state of Hawaii.

The new stores, which include 21 general-merchandise locations and six SuperTargets, will hold a grand opening on Sunday, March 8.

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Kroger Co. plans to invest $75 million in "a massive economic development initiative" that will create "several hundred" jobs in the Fort Wayne area.

Details were announced 10 a.m. Thursday at a news conference. Bob Moeder, president of Kroger's central division, and Mayor Tom Henry met with members of the media at the Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce downtown headquarters.

The initial announcement said the company will:

*Add three stores. Two of the new stores will have a unique format that
does not now exist in Indiana.
*Close three stores.
*Significantly expand two stores.
*Remodel three stores.
*Build 10 more fuel centers in the region


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Jan. 16 (Bloomberg) -- President-elect Barack Obama is likely to back a bank-rescue effort that combines fresh capital injections with steps to deal with toxic assets clogging lenders’ balance sheets, according to people familiar with the matter.

Obama’s economic team will use another portion of the $350 billion remaining from the Troubled Asset Relief Program to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. It may also assist cash-strapped cities and states that are having trouble selling bonds, the people said.

This week’s sell-off in financial stocks and the continuing decline of the U.S. economy put pressure on Treasury Secretary- designate Timothy Geithner and Obama’s economics chief Lawrence Summers to unveil a comprehensive program. Without a radical new effort, soaring credit losses could prolong and deepen a recession that is now more than a year old.

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Though 2008 was wrought with layoffs and economic struggles, the New Year means rejuvenated hope for job seekers.

While several companies continue to make mass layoffs, other companies are shifting their focus to hire aggressively in the beginning of 2009.

"This is a difficult economy, no doubt," says Andrea Hough, vice president of talent acquisition for ServiceMaster, a lawn care and landscape maintenance company. "However, I would caution job seekers to be thoughtful about whom they are going to work for and not act out of desperation. There are some very strong companies with solid ethics in need of employees eager to be a part of a thriving organization."

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(Times Union (Albany, NY) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Dec. 3--COLONIE -- You're standing at Osborne and Albany Shaker roads, in tony Loudonville.To the southwest is a Rite Aid drugstore. To the northeast is another Rite Aid. And to the northwest is the corner where Walgreen Co. has been buying land, including a $2 million purchase in October.One intersection. Two existing drugstores. One planned drugstore.Overkill? Perhaps.But the intersection is not unique. You'll come across similar corners in much of the Capital Region, following the drugstore building boom of recent years.

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Despite a stalling economy and unemployment on the rise, two major companies are hiring by the hundreds.

Target is about to open its first two Hawaii stores and needs up to 1,200 workers. Costco is opening its seventh site, and needs up to 200 there.

Target is about to breathe new life into this long-vacant commercial building -- and into the Hawaii job market.

"It's going to be a great way for folks to kick off '09 with us coming to Hawaii," says Roger Thomas, Target.

Between the Salt Lake site and one in Kapolei, Target will be hiring up to 1,200 people for a march opening. when it opens a Kona location next July, it'll hire another 400.

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They jointly bid $6.25 million for the bankrupt retailer’s locations. The move gives Kohl’s access to ‘under-penetrated markets’ and enables Forever 21 to begin big-box expansions.

By Andrea ChangDecember 13, 2008

Retailers Forever 21 Inc. and Kohl’s Corp. won a joint bid to take over 46 stores from bankrupt Mervyn’s for $6.25 million, the chains said Friday.

The deal gives Kohl’s the leasing rights to 31 stores; Forever 21 will assume the other 15 locations. The agreement is still pending approval by the court overseeing the bankruptcy proceedings for Mervyn’s.

“We got exactly the stores that we wanted,” said Christopher Lee, senior vice president at Forever 21. “We’ve waited a long time for this and it finally came for us. This is just the beginning for us for big-box expansions.”

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PLANO — At 6:30 a.m., the sun hasn't risen yet, and the streets in this Dallas suburb are deserted. But in a beige strip mall surrounded by newly built homes, hundreds of people are waiting in line, shuffling their feet in the cold air.

They are here for the grand opening of natural foods chain Sunflower Farmers Market's first store in Texas . With stores that are smaller than those of traditional grocers, Colorado-based Sunflower touts its rock-bottom prices, convenience and wide selection of produce.

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Wage pressures also increased; developments silence inflation fears.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Worker productivity slowed in the summer while wage pressures increased, but both developments were better than expected and are unlikely to raise inflation alarms at the Federal Reserve.

The Labor Department reported Wednesday that productivity, the key ingredient for rising living standards, rose at an annual rate of 1.3% in the July-September quarter. That's down from the 3.6% growth rate in the second quarter, but slightly higher than the 1.1% increase initially reported a month ago and better than the 0.9% rise economists expected.

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The markets may be in turmoil. But not all the news is bad.
The editors of Kiplinger's Personal Finance and Kiplinger's Forecasting came up with ten things
going right these days. See if you agree:

1.Oil Loses Its Swagger: With the U.S. and global economy hurting, oil prices have dropped more
than 50% in just three months, from $147 a barrel in July to the $65-70 range. .
2. A Tipping Point for the Auto Industry: After years of talk and false starts, finally, all the major
carmakers are furiously developing hybrid and alternative-fuel vehicles that could lessen our dependence on foreign oil. Meanwhile, desperate dealers are offering unheard-of incentives on new, gas-fired models.
3. Interest Rates Are Low and Headed Lower: The prime rate is at 4.5%, which is driving down
interest rates on home-equity lines of credit and some consumer loans.
4. Homes Are More Affordable: Real estate, which was overpriced during the housing bubble, has
returned to earth. That's especially good news for first-time home buyers who were priced out of the
market.
5. Bank Savings Have Never Been Safer: The $700-billion federal rescue plan more than doubles
the amount of federal deposit insurance on individual bank accounts, to $250,000 from $100,000. Uncle Sam is also now providing providing unlimited FDIC insurance on non-interest-bearing accounts, covering virtually all of the nation's small businesses.
6. Stocks Are on Sale, and Many Bonds Offer Terrific Yields: For example, shares of AT&T
(symbol T) sell for about eight times estimated 2009 earnings and yield 6%. Networking giant Cisco
Systems (CSCO) sells for only ten times earnings estimates for its July 2009 fiscal year. Johnson &
Johnson (JNJ), as steady an Eddie as you'll find, sells for just 13 times '09 forecasts.
7. The Miracle of Technological Innovation Continues: Been to Best Buy, Sam's or Costco
lately? For $799, you can now buy a 42-inch, high-definition flat-panel TV that will knock your socks off. Throw in another $200, and you can get a surround-sound system to truly transform your den into a home theater.
8. Prosperity Reigns in the Heartland: The fall harvest is shaping up as one of the best ever,
despite the destructive weather and floods in the Mississippi River corridor since last spring. Exports of U.S. farm products will increase more than 40% by value this year. And recent years of high profits have allowed farmers to pay down debt so low that it accounts for a measly 9% of their assets providing all the credit they'll need for 2009 operations.
9. A New Tone and Direction in Washington: As we are starting to see, the election of a new
chief executive should provide at least 100 days of galvanizing certainty for markets, and a new direction and sense of purpose for the country.
10. Shoppers Can Expect Great Gift Buys This Holiday Season: Retailers depend on robust
end-of-year sales to turn a profit, but for 2008, the National Federation of Retailers forecasts
holiday spending will increase only 2.2% from last year. That won't beat inflation, butt's good
news for bargain hunters.