H&M posts weaker-than-expected fiscal first-quarter sales in slow start to the year at CNBC. "Sales at the Swedish fashion giant rose 2%...Operating profit totaled 1.2 billion in the first quarter, versus 1.9 billion Swedish krona expected." Read more   Petco Q4 comp sales +0.5% Press release   Amazon launches personalized shopping prompts as part of its generative AI push at TechCrunch. "...announced on Wednesday a new feature called “Interests,” aimed at creating a more personalized and conversational search experience. With the new feature, customers can enter tailored prompts in the search bar, reflecting their interests, preferences, and even their budget." Read [...]

  Consumer confidence plummets to lowest level since January 2021 at CNN   Affirm announces JPMorgan Chase merchants can soon offer installment loans at checkout at CNBC. "U.S. merchants who use JPMorgan to handle payments can soon add Affirm to their checkout pages, according to a release. Consumers will have access to loans ranging from 30 days to 60 months, according to Affirm." Read more   Retailers Bulk Up Inventories to Blunt Tariff Impact at WSJ. "The Logistics Managers’ Index, a monthly survey of supply-chain managers, showed inventory levels expanded in February at the fastest rate since June 2022. The [...]

  Dollar General Corp. Q4 comp sales +1.2% "For fiscal 2025, the Company expects...Same-store sales growth in the range of approximately 1.2% to 2.2%."  Press release   ...Dollar General CEO warns consumers are cash-strapped, and says 2025 won’t be better at CNBC. "For the fourth-quarter, Dollar General said same-store sales growth of 1.2% was driven entirely by 2.3% growth in average transaction. Customer traffic fell 1.1% during the period, “impacted by ongoing financial pressures of our core consumer,” Vasos said." Read more   Trump threatens 200% tariff on European alcohol as trade war escalates at CNN   PPI showed no [...]

  Dick's Sporting Goods Q4 comp sales +6.4% Press release   ...Dick’s Sporting Goods is latest retailer to forecast rocky 2025 at CNBC. "In the year ahead, Dick’s is expecting earnings per share to be between $13.80 and $14.40, well short of Wall Street estimates of $14.86..." Read more   Kohl's Q4 comp sales down 6.7% Press release   ...Kohl's downbeat annual sales forecast sends shares tumbling at Yahoo. "Kohl's expects 2025 comparable sales to decline 4% to 6%, compared with estimates for a 0.9% drop, according to data compiled by LSEG. Earnings per share is projected in the range of [...]

  BJ's Wholesale Club Q4 comp sales (ex-fuel) +4.6% "...guidance for fiscal 2025: Comparable club sales, excluding the impact of gasoline sales, to increase 2.0% to 3.5% year-over-year." Press release   Kroger Q4 ID sales (ex-fuel) +2.4% "Full-Year 2025 Guidance: Identical Sales without fuel of 2.0% – 3.0%." Press release   Walmart Asks Chinese Suppliers for Major Price Cuts on Trump Tariffs at Bloomberg. "Some suppliers, including producers of kitchenware and clothing, have been asked to lower their prices by as much as 10% per round of tariffs, essentially shouldering the full cost of Trump’s duties, according to the people, who [...]

  Trump tariffs: Mexico says it will retaliate, joining Canada and China - Dow Drops 650 Points CNBC   Target Q4 comp sales+1.5 % / Digital Q4 comp sales +8.7% Press release   ...Target warns February sales were soft at CNBC. "Target on Tuesday warned that it expects a “meaningful” drop in first-quarter profit...as it contends with “ongoing consumer uncertainty,” soft sales in February and concerns around tariffs." 6:27 Cornell video/Read more   ...Tariffs may force Target to raise prices on fruits and vegetables in the next couple of days at CNN. "Cornell said Target relies heavily on Mexican produce [...]