All Hail Wal-Mart (WMT)

November 6, 2008 by Douglas A. McIntyre

WmtThe magnificence of being big and having extraordinary buying power put Wal-Mart (WMT) at the head of the retailing industry again. It can cut prices to consumers in a way that would ruin its competition.

Those factors showed up in same-store sales for October.

The improvement over October of last month was 2.4%. Most analysts expected a little better than half of that.

"Customer comparable traffic is higher and our seasonal merchandising events are delivering improved sales," said Eduardo Castro-Wright, Walmart U.S. president and chief executive officer. "Highly competitive pricing, especially on basics throughout the store, is driving these results."

And, the rest of the industry can go to hell.

WMT shares look ready to move up at the open.

Douglas A. McIntyre

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