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| US retailer Macy's to close 100 stores | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| US department store chain Macy's is to close about 100 stores and increase investment in its online business after 18 months of sliding sales. | |
| Total sales fell 4% to $5.87bn in the second quarter after falling 7.4% in the first three months of the year. | Total sales fell 4% to $5.87bn in the second quarter after falling 7.4% in the first three months of the year. |
| As in the UK, department stores in the US have been struggling with tough competition from online retailers and discount stores. | As in the UK, department stores in the US have been struggling with tough competition from online retailers and discount stores. |
| Macy's currently operates 728 stores in the US. | |
| A strong dollar has reduced tourist spending in the United States and poor weather conditions have also weighed on sales, Macy's said. | |
| The company, which also operates the upmarket Bloomingdale's stores, said it would focus investment in stores that offer the highest growth potential. | |
| Sales in stores open at least a year, including sales in departments licensed to third parties, fell 2% in the latest quarter, though the drop was not as big as analysts had expected. | Sales in stores open at least a year, including sales in departments licensed to third parties, fell 2% in the latest quarter, though the drop was not as big as analysts had expected. |
| Although sales were slower, results were better than expected, with profit and revenue, mirroring the strong performance of smaller rival Kohl's Corp and lifting stocks across the sector. | |
| Shares in Macy's jumped by nearly 17% at the start of trade on Wall Street, before trimming gains slightly. | |
| "We operate in a fast-changing world, and our company is moving forward decisively to build further on Macy's heritage," said Macy's chief executive Terry Lundgren. | "We operate in a fast-changing world, and our company is moving forward decisively to build further on Macy's heritage," said Macy's chief executive Terry Lundgren. |
| Macy's said it would look to build on the rapid growth of its online sales. | |
| "To foster continuation of this growth, the company is investing in capacity-building on its sites and apps, improvement in natural language search, faster page loading and simpler procedures for placing and fulfilling orders," the company said in a statement. |