Seasonal

New York City -- Tiffany & Co. reported Tuesday that sales growth weakened in the United States and Europe during the holiday season, although other regions experienced significant gains.

The company cut its yearly earnings guidance. 

New York City -- According to Chain Store Age columnist Jeff Green’s latest editorial, one of the most noteworthy trends of this holiday season was the robust performance of independent retailers.

What could this mean for retail real estate? Click here to read more.

Target may have floundered a bit in December, but many retailers reported solid sales gains for the month. Overall, retail sales rose 3.4% at the 22 retailers tracked by the Thomson Reuters same-store sales index, compared with the 3.3% analyst forecast, however results were mixed.

That was the case with the nation’s discounters and department store retailers, with many chains citing unseasonably warm weather that sapped demand for cold-weather merchandise.

Dallas -- Zale Corp. reported Tuesday that same-store sales for the holiday selling season of November and December 2011 rose 5.9%, compared with an 8.5% gain in the same period last year.

Within the two-month period, same-store store sales increased 10.1% in November and 4.2% in December.

Revenues for the two-month period were $564 million, compared with $533 million in the same period last year, an increase of 5.8%.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart announced that it is helping customers prepare for tax season by offering low-cost tax preparation preparation services and free in-store federal Form 1040EZ filing. In addition, the retailer provides $3 and $6 check-cashing services. 

Grapevine, Texas -- GameStop Corp. on Monday reported nearly flat sales for the nine-week holiday period that ended on Dec. 31. Total sales were $3.02 million, or about the same as last year. Same-store sales slipped 0.3%.

Las Vegas -- Sales of consumer electronics fell 5.9% this past holiday season, as smartphones cannibalize sales of standalone gadgets like cameras, camcorders and GPS navigation devices, according to the NPD Group.

Electronics sales, including TVs and PCs, totaled $9.5 billion in the five weeks ending Dec. 24, NPD reported. Camcorder sales fell 43% and sales of digital picture frames were down 38%. GPS units decreased 33%. Television sales were down 4%, bolstered by sales of TVs bigger than 50 inches.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Walmart is expanding the services it offers at tax time to include free in-store federal Form 1040EZ filing.

The chain has partnered with Jackson Hewitt and H&R Block to double its in-store tax kiosks and lower the cost for tax preparation services. Jackson Hewitt will offer free federal Form 1040EZ filing at its Walmart kiosks throughout the tax season, and H&R Block will offer a free federal Form 1040EZ until Feb. 29.