HD

Ocean carriers are canceling dozens of sailings on the world’s busiest routes during what is normally their peak season, the latest sign of the economic whiplash hitting companies as inflation weighs on global trade and consumer spending.The October cancellations are a sharp reversal from just a few months ago, when scarce shipping space pushed freight rates higher and carriers’ profits to record levels. Last October, companies like Walmart Inc. and Home Depot Inc.…

Shoppers are finding more empty space on store shelves, but not because the retailer is out of stock. In many cases, the items are locked away to prevent theft.At a Best Buy Co. store in the suburbs of Houston, hundreds of items including Bose speakers and Fitbit activity trackers have been replaced by small blue signs that read, “This product kept in secured location,” and ask shoppers to find store workers for help. “There used to be a lot more on the floor itself than locked up in cages,”…

Home Depot’s transaction tally has fallen in each of the past five quarters. Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg News…

A federal judge approved Blue Cross Blue Shield companies’ settlement of a sweeping antitrust suit filed on behalf of their customers, with the insurers agreeing to pay $2.67 billion and change certain practices that allegedly limited competition.The approval on Tuesday by U.S. District Judge R. David Proctor, whose Alabama court handled the litigation, means the settlement is set to start going into effect after 30 days. It could be delayed, however, if an employer or policyholder appeals the judge’s approval. Employers…

Sherwin-Williams Co. SHW -11.27% cut its full-year profit view, warning that demand for its paints and coatings is deteriorating and that it needs to raise prices aggressively to protect margins. The Cleveland-based company on Wednesday lowered its outlook even as it reported a rise in second-quarter sales. It said that do-it-yourself customers in North America continue to pull back on spending. Demand is crumbling in Europe, while…

We've seen a good number of smart televisions from many brands selling for less than Rs. 25,000, and the segment has seen some big improvements of late. Before, you could expect only the basics, but TVs are constantly getting better when it comes to software and performance. You can now get top-end software and hardware in budget televisions, thanks in part to strong competition in the segment from Indian and international players who continue to push the boundaries of what you can expect for not a lot of money. The…

Target and other big retail chains are struggling to adjust to shifts in shoppers’ priorities after more than two years of pandemic. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images…

Microsoft Corp. MSFT 0.79% cut sales and earnings guidance for the current quarter, citing the impact of foreign exchange rates as the stronger U.S. dollar takes a toll. Newsletter Sign-up The 10-Point. A personal, guided…

Wages for the median workers at the majority of big American companies are higher than they were before the pandemic, with the tight job market helping to lift paydays for many bank tellers, factory workers and software programmers.Compensation in 2021 for the median worker at 275 companies in the S&P 500 index was higher than in 2019, including 150 companies where it increased 10% or more from 2019, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis. Half as many firms reported their median worker’s 2021 compensation…

Inflation is catching up with some of America’s biggest retailers, as their recent quarterly results were pinched by higher costs on everything from products to fuel. Investors dumped shares of Walmart Inc., WMT -6.79% Target Corp. TGT -24.93% and other big chains—notching some of the biggest declines since the market crash of 1987—amid fears that the companies wouldn’t be able to pass along higher prices to consumers. It has also…