NRF

New York City -- A new global standard for retail payments designed to help exchange data between payment terminals and POS terminals and support new payment technologies has been released by the Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS) and EPASOrg, which sets card payment standards in Europe.

New York City -- Former president Bill Clinton delivered a keynote address entitled “Embracing Our Common Humanity” to an overflow crowd Monday morning at the National Retail Federation’s 101st Annual Convention & Expo in New York.

In his speech, Clinton spoke about the inequality, instability and the unsustainable way of life which makes up the world today, and said there remains a strong connection between social opportunity and economic opportunity.

NEW YORK — Retail industry sales are expected to rise, albeit not at the same pace as 2011, according to the National Retail Federation.

Retail industry sales will rise 3.4% to $2.53 trillion, NRF said, compared with a pace of 4.7% in the year-ago period. The expected slowdown in consumer spending, NRF said, will be influenced by a number of factors, including stalled unemployment rate and lack of newly-created jobs. But despite the lower projection, the industry is expected to garner stronger numbers than other industries, NRF said.

New York City -- National Retail Federation officials said Monday that a record crowd of 24,000 attendees is expected to converge on its 101st Annual Convention & Expo, which kicked off Sunday at the Jacob J. Javits Convention Center in New York City. The exhibit floor officially opens on Monday.

New York City -- A report released Monday by the National Retail Federation said that retail industry sales growth for 2012 is forecasted at 3.4%, a pace slower than 2011’s 4.7% growth.

Still, said NRF, the retail industry will grow at a rate faster than many other industries.

Smarter decision-making is a goal all retailers have, and now Target should be in an even better position to execute on that objective following a major agreement with industry leading data warehousing and analytics provider Teradata.

New York City -- The National Retail Federation’s 101st Annual Convention and EXPO kicks off Jan. 15 at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City. The four-day event will feature topics ranging from digital and mobile retailing to the evolution of the retail store to economic trends and trends in consumer spending. Former President Bill Clinton is the featured keynote speaker on Jan. 17.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation announced that Whole Foods Market is the recipient of its prestigious annual Innovator of the Year award.

Walter Robb, co-CEO, will accept the award on behalf of co-CEO and founder John Mackey during the Annual Retail Industry Luncheon at NRF’s 101st Annual Convention and Expo on Jan. 17.

New York City -- Attendees at the 2012 National Retail Federation convention (“The Big Show”) in  New York who donate $20 to The Retail Orphan Initiative (RetailROI) will take home a Build-A-Bear Teddy Bear. The annaul event will be held Jan. 15 -18, at the Jacob Javits Center.

In an initiative designed to raise funds for charities sponsored by RetailROI, Oracle is providing 2,000 Build-A-Bear Teddy Bears dressed in a custom RetailROI t-shirt at its booth on the exhibit floor (booth #1319).

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation reported Thursday that holiday sales edged NRF forecasts, rising 4.1% to $471.5 billion for the period.

NRF predicted 3.8% growth. Results exclude automobiles, gas stations and restaurants.