Market Trends

NEW YORK - Online retailing is expected to fare only about as well or as poorly as the retail economy as a whole during the Christmas season, The New York Times reported today.

NEW YORK - The bottled water market is currently experiencing a period of pronounced growth that shows little sign of slowing, according to a report by MarketResearch.com.

GUATEMALA, Costa Rica, The Netherlands - Paiz Ahold, the 50/50 joint venture of food retailers La Fragua and Ahold in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, has signed an agreement with Costa Rican supermarket and hypermarket company CSU to form a new joint venture, bringing together all of their oper

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Commerce Department reported today that consumer spending dropped by 1.8 percent in September, following a modest 0.3 percent gain in August. This is the largest drop in more than 14 years, The Associated Press reported.

ROSWELL, Ga. - Harry's Farmers Market Inc. on Wednesday announced that it has completed the sale of its three mega-stores and related support facilities to Whole Foods Market Group Inc., as previously announced, for a purchase price of $35 million in cash.

'You've got to push the envelope. The more you push, the more opportunities you'll find," says Jeff Noddle, president, CEO and COO of Supervalu.

MINNEAPOLIS - Food retailer and distributor Nash Finch Company today reported that net earnings rose 50 percent to $6.0 million for the third quarter ended October 6, 2001, compared to net earnings of $4.0 million reported for the third quarter of 2000.

LONDON - Tesco, the UK's largest supermarket chain, has announced plans to expand its market for organic food to #1bn ($1.46 billion) within five years, the BBC reported. The company claims it is already the country's largest organic retailer.

BOULDER, Colo. - Wild Oats Markets Inc., a leading national natural and organic foods retailer, today announced financial results for the third quarter and first nine months ended September 29, 2001.

Sara Lee Corp. today said net income fell almost 5 percent in its fiscal first quarter. Del Monte Foods Co. reported a slight loss in its earnings.

WASHINGTON, DC - The supermarket industry posted its highest net profits in nearly three decades at 1.25 percent of sales, according to the Food Marketing Institute's 2000-2001 Annual Financial Review. Operating income, at 3.03 percent, was near the 10-year high of 3.05 percent.

KOKIE, Ill. -Private label procurers Topco Associates Inc. and Shurfine International Inc. on Monday announced that their respective shareholder groups have voted in favor of a proposed merger of the Shurfine International operations into those of Topco Associates Inc.