International Business News - sales http://www.ibtimes.com All articles are copyrighted by IBTimes.com 400 100 http://www.ibtimes.com/ http://www.ibtimes.com/images/top_logo_ibt2_3.gif J.D. Power and Associates cut its forecast for light-vehicle sales in the U.S. on Wednesday, citing the weak economy. J.D. Power, a consulting and marketing firm, said it now expects new light-vehicle sales in 2008 to fall 12 percent to 14.2 million units from 16.1 million units the previous year. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080723/jd-power-lowers-us-auto-sales-forecast.htm Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:21:16 EDT General Motors Corp., pummeled by falling U.S. sales and high gas prices, lost the global sales lead to Toyota Motor Corp. in the first half of this year, but the churning market makes it difficult to predict which automaker will end the year on top. http://www.ibtimes.com/data/articleimgs/96281-japan-toyota.jpg http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080723/toyota-beats-gm-in-worldwide-sales-in-first-half.htm http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080723/toyota-beats-gm-in-worldwide-sales-in-first-half.htm Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:31:18 EDT The Massachusetts House voted overwhelmingly Tuesday in favor of a plan to give consumers a two-day break from the state sales tax next month. By a 139-15 vote, lawmakers agreed to withhold the state's 5 percent sales tax from most items up to $2,500 that are sold during the weekend of Aug. 16-17. Boats, cars and meals and tobacco products are excluded, as are telecommunication services and gas, steam and electricity utilities. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080722/massachusetts-sales-tax-holiday-advances.htm Tue, 22 Jul 2008 15:43:29 EDT Diversified media company Journal Communications Inc. said Tuesday that June profit for its publishing and broadcast groups fell 6.4 percent due to advertising losses as circulation revenue stayed mostly flat. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080722/journal-communications-june-sales-fall-6-4-percent.htm Tue, 22 Jul 2008 10:00:05 EDT Fast-food chain operator CKE Restaurants Inc. on Tuesday said same-store sales rose during the four weeks ended July 14 at both its Carl's Jr. and Hardee's restaurants. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080722/cke-restaurants-same-store-sales-rise.htm Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:27:45 EDT Wall Street on Tuesday will see if U.S. shoppers crippled by high energy prices earlier this month continued to spend mostly on necessities like food and household items. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080722/ahead-of-the-bell-retail-sales.htm Tue, 22 Jul 2008 06:20:15 EDT U.S. video game retail sales soared 53 percent in June, fueled by Nintendo Co.'s Wii and handheld DS gaming systems, as well as Konami Corp.'s blockbuster "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots"--by far the month's best-selling title. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080717/video-game-sales-soar-53-percent-in-june.htm Thu, 17 Jul 2008 19:29:13 EDT Health care products and services company Cardinal Health Inc. has agreed to pay a $105,000 fine to settle accusations that it failed to report suspicious drug orders, the state's pharmaceutical board said. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080716/cardinal-health-agrees-to-pay-ohio-105-000-fine.htm Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:09:28 EDT Gannett Co., the nation's largest newspaper publisher, said Wednesday its operating revenue fell 12.1 percent in June, hurt by a continued decline in real estate and employment ad sales. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080716/gannett-june-operating-revenue-drops-12-1-percent.htm Wed, 16 Jul 2008 11:26:23 EDT Toyota Motor Corp. is planning to cut this year's global sales target to 9.5 million vehicles, public broadcaster NHK reported Wednesday. Japan's biggest carmaker had a sales target of 9.85 million for 2008. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080715/report-toyota-to-cut-annual-sales-goal.htm Tue, 15 Jul 2008 22:55:14 EDT Ford of Europe said Tuesday that sales at its main 19 European markets fell nearly 5 percent in June, hurt by lower sales of its top-selling Fiesta and Focus sedans. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080715/ford-of-europe-sales-fall-5-percent-in-june.htm Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:13:38 EDT Retail sales edged up by a weaker amount than expected in June as sales at auto dealerships plunged. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that retail sales increased by just 0.1 percent last month, even weaker than the 0.4 percent gain that analysts had been expecting. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080715/retail-sales-edge-up-slight-0-1-percent-in-june.htm Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:31:04 EDT Wall Street on Tuesday will find out if thrifty U.S. consumers battered by high energy prices still managed to spend a little extra at the nation's retailers earlier this month. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080715/ahead-of-the-bell-retail-sales.htm Tue, 15 Jul 2008 05:52:08 EDT Motorcycle enthusiasts Bob Chase and Bernard "Buddy" Rosenbaum have toured the world's roads for decades, but for their latest cross-country trip, they opted for a unique type of motorized scooter that's both easier to ride and more fuel efficient. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080714/3-wheeler-lure-more-folks-to-gas-sipping-scooters.htm Mon, 14 Jul 2008 18:42:18 EDT Apple Inc. said Monday it sold 1 million iPhones in the first three days its newest model was on the market. "IPhone 3G had a stunning opening weekend," said Steve Jobs, Apple's chief executive, in a statement. http://www.ibtimes.com/data/articleimgs/91069-iphone.jpg http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080714/apple-sells-million-iphones-first-days.htm http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080714/apple-sells-million-iphones-first-days.htm Mon, 14 Jul 2008 16:56:27 EDT General Motors said Monday its sales in Latin America, Africa and the Middle East jumped nearly 18 percent in the second quarter. The automaker said it sold a total of 346,100 vehicles in the regions during the quarter, up 52,100 vehicles from the same period a year earlier. GM's market share for the regions grew to 17.5 percent from 16.8 percent previously. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080714/gm-sales-rise-in-latin-america-africa-mideast.htm Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:51:07 EDT DineEquity Inc. said Thursday its second quarter same-store sales rose at its IHOP pancake chain but fell slightly at its Applebee's chain. For the quarter ended June 30, DineEquity said IHOP's same-store sales rose 2.6 percent systemwide while Applebee's systemwide same-store sales fell 1.7 percent. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080710/dineequity-releases-2q-same-store-sales-results.htm Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:40:21 EDT Pharmacy chain Longs Drug Stores Corp. said Thursday its preliminary June same-store sales rose 1.1 percent on a calendar shift that included Memorial Day. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080710/longs-drug-stores-june-same-store-sales-rise.htm Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:30:43 EDT North Dakota's economy continued to purr in the midst of a national economic slump, with taxable sales and purchases rising 12.9 percent during the first three months of the year, the state Tax Department said. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080710/nd-1st-qtr-taxable-sales-jump-12-9-percent.htm Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:29:52 EDT Disposable medical device maker Merit Medical Systems Inc. said Thursday it expects to report second-quarter profit above Wall Street estimates. For the quarter ended June 30, the company expects earnings between 19 cents and 21 cents per share, based on preliminary sales results of $57.4 million, an 11 percent increase from the second quarter of last year. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080710/merit-medical-to-report-2q-profit-above-estimates.htm Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:04:59 EDT