Finance & Capital Management

Chicago -- Jones Lang LaSalle announced Tuesday that it has launched a website to deliver strategies, tools and information regarding the upcoming changes in lease accounting treatment by the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and its counterpart, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB).

New York City -- Consumer spending will rise 3% this year, according to retail analysts at S&P Equity Research. While the majority of publicly traded retailers were able to capture share in 2010 from smaller competitors or those that were forced to declare bankruptcy, and also increase profit margins, the S&P retail analysts see 2011 as another good year.

MINNEAPOLIS -- Target announced that Tony Fisher has been named president of Target Canada.  In this position, Fisher will be responsible for building the team, establishing the headquarters and leading the day-to-day operations of the corporation's recently announced expansion into Canada, the company reported.

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — CVS Caremark has appointed interim leadership for its retail business with Mike Bloom, EVP merchandising and supply chain, and Scott Baker, EVP internal operations and real estate, taking over the management of the retail business for its 7,100 stores nationwide.

Bloom and Baker, who will report to Larry Merlo, president and COO of CVS Caremark, are assuming these duties on an interim basis, pending the completion of the company's search for a new president of CVS/pharmacy.

By George F. Brown, Jr., [email protected]

The increased pace of merger and acquisition activity late in 2010, including some huge deals, suggests that 2011 will be an active year. Low interest rates, significant cash on many firms’ balance sheets, and stock prices that are low enough to attract buyers but high enough to move sellers off the sidelines all reinforce that possibility.

An announcement last week that Target plans to open 21 stores in the coming fiscal year was interesting on a number of levels.

For starters, the disclosure was rather uncharacteristic for a company that in years past would publicly release its stores openings a week or two in advance of the actual openings. In this case, the company shared its full list of openings for the entire year two weeks before its new fiscal year even begins.

Dallas -- Blockbuster has received an extension to Feb. 4 to file its restructuring plan in order to emerge from bankruptcy protection, according to a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The retailer filed for Chapter 11 protection in September.

Chicago -- Urban Retail Properties LLC said Tuesday it has appointed Samuel J. Greenblatt as principal, finance/capital markets. Greenblatt’s primary role will be to raise capital and foster financial relationship opportunities for the company.

Prior to his role with Urban, Greenblatt was executive VP and director of originations of RAIT Financial Trust, a NYSE traded mortgage real estate investment trust.