Consumer Electronics

Boca Raton, Fla. -- Office Depot reported a net loss, as well as declining total sales and same-store sales, during a disappointing second quarter of fiscal 2013. The retailer’s net loss of $64 million was the same net loss it reported in the second quarter of fiscal 2012. Excluding pre-tax charges, including some relating to the planned OfficeMax merger, and non-cash store asset impairment charges, the net loss would have been $28 million.

Armonk, N.Y. -- Online consumer spending rose a healthy 15% in the second quarter of this year compared to the second quarter of last year. The IBM Online Retail Sales Index shows that mobile sales reached 19.4% of total online sales, up 28% from last year. Online shopping growth substantially outpaced the 4.6% year-over-year increase of in-store sales during the second quarter.

SILVER SPRING, Md. — Regency Centers Corp. and a co-investment partner have acquired the 31,316-sq.-ft. Shoppes of Burnt Mills in Silver Spring, Md., just north of Washington, D.C., for $13.6 million. Regency’s share of the off-market acquisition was $1.7 million.

Chicago — Pure-play e-tailers are doing a better job in satisfying their customers overall than omnichannel retailers, but omnichannel retailers have an edge in select functional areas like checkout. According to results of the mid-year Customer Feedback Index (CFI) from OpinionLab, e-tailers had an average CFI score of 481, compared with a CFI average of 457 for omnichannel retailers.

Halifax — Walmart Canada on Friday opened its first supercenter in Atlantic Canada, in the Halifax Shopping Centre Annex in Halifax.

The store is one of 37 supercenter projects planned for the company's current fiscal year, which ends January 31, 2014. The projects, which were announced earlier this year, include building new stores and expanding, remodelling or relocating existing stores and represent an investment of more than $450 million in the Canadian economy.

LOS ANGELES — With the back-to-school season well underway, a new spending forecast from e-commerce platform provider PriceGrabber conflicts with other recent studies and highlights the danger of placing much credence in what shoppers say about their spending intentions.

Sidney, Neb. -- Cabela’s Inc. on Thursday announced it will open four new markets in 2014:  Acworth, Ga., Augusta, Ga.; Missoula, Mont.; and Barrie, Ontario (Canada).  The outdoor goods retailer also reported that its second-quarter net income surged 31% on a 10.5% rise in same-store sales. 

WTI expects that retail August 2013 will be the coolest in four years for the nation as a whole. Temperatures will trend cooler than last year in parts of the Northeast and in the western half of the nation, while temperatures will trend warmer in the Southeast and Ohio Valley. The Plains states and Rocky Mountains will see increased precipitation this year, while the Southwest and Southeast will trend drier than last year. August is expected to be another active month for tropical systems, especially during the latter part of the month.