International Business

Consumer confidence remains strong, but that's not stopping retailers from worrying about the economy.   General economic conditions ranked as a top risk factor for the 9th consecutive year in an annual ranking of the top 25 risk factors by retailers, cited by 100% of respondents. Cybersecurity and regulatory concerns shared the top spot with the economy.  

As it turns out, there was lots of interest in Whole Foods Market.   The retailer was fielding other potential deals, including approaches by four private equity firms and two unnamed companies identified only as "Company X" and "Company Y," when Amazon made its move, CNBC reported.   

Muji, the Tokyo-based global retailer, will open its largest store to date — underneath its very own hotel.      The company will open a hotel in in Tokyo's Ginza district in spring 2019. The hotel will be located in a new, 10-story building that will also house a 35,000-sq.-ft. Muji flagship. The store will occupy one basement floor up to part of the sixth floor above ground, with the rest of the space above devoted to the hotel, according to the Nikkei Asian Review.  

The nation's largest wholesale club operator reported strong sales for the month of June, both domestically and globally.   Costco Wholesale Corp. posted net sales of $12.17 billion for the five weeks ended July 2, 2017, up 5% from $11.33 billion during the year-ago period. Total same-store sales were up 6%.   In the U.S., same-store sales rose 6.5% in June. International same-store sales increased 6.2%. Canadian same-store sales rose 3.2%.   

The CEO of Hudson's Bay Company, the managing director of Harrods, and the president of Pinterest will be among the featured speakers at Shoptalk Europe.    The event will take place on October 9-11, 2017, at The Bella Center in Copenhagen. It will feature more than 125 speakers, according to organizers, with 75% of the speakers being C-level executives, including 65 CEOs. More than 2,000 attendees are expected.   

Amazon has completed its acquisition of e-commerce company souq.com, a leader in the Middle East's online shopping market. The deal, which was initially announced in March, closed for $580 million in cash, according to filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.   

Alimentation Couche-Tard has closed on the biggest transaction in its history.    The Canadian company announced that it has completed its $4.4 billion acquisition of CST Brands. The deal will add approximately 1,300 stores to the Couche-Tard portfolio, including 666 locations in Texas.   

QuikTrip Corp. is expanding into two new markets.   The convenience-store chain plans to open a total of 100 stores in the San Antonio and Austin (Texas) areas. Construction is expected to begin this winter, with the first locations scheduled to open in the summer of 2018.   The expansion marks QuikTrip's first new market entry in six years. In 2011, the company launched its Carolinas division, adding 75 stores in Charlotte, North Carolina and Greenville, South Carolina.