Research & Analysis

LOS ANGELES - Smart & Final Inc., operators of warehouse-style stores and two foodservice distribution companies, on Monday reported earnings of $0.18 per diluted share for the 16-week third quarter ended Oct. 7, 2001, compared to earnings of $0.14 per diluted share in the third quarter of the prior year, an increase of 29% in per share results.

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. That stands in contrast to a steady growth since 1998, when online sales kept surging despite less favorable economic trends or even normal seasonal patterns.

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.

TEL AVIV - Super-Sol Ltd., Israel's leading supermarket chain, today reported record revenues and profits for the third quarter of 2001.

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 operations in the Central American region.

'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. These days, Noddle, who took over the helm in June from long-time CEO Mike Wright, is pushing pretty hard, looking at opportunities outside Supervalu's traditional customer base —such as alternative formats, significant reductions in inventory, organic growth vs. acquisition, B2B initiatives, and a laundry list of other strategic issues.

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.