The secret to Labubus’ success? China’s ‘blind box’ craze at CNBC. "Ruan Yue, a 23-year-old student, says she spends $55 a month on blind boxes — and enjoys the gamble. Ruan owns 150 Labubu and other dolls from mystery packaging. “The moment you open the box if it’s a version you want or a limited edition, you get so excited,” she said...The Chinese government, however, has warned through its state media against “irrational consumption” and blind box “addiction.” Read more   Most Department Stores Are Leaving Malls. Dillard’s Is Buying One. at WSJ. "(Dillard's) purchased the Longview Mall in Texas, [...]

  Walmart Q2 comp sales (ex-fuel) +4.6% (vs. expected +4%) / Sam's Club +5.9% (vs. expected +5.2%) at CNBC. "CFO, John David Rainey: “There are certainly areas where we have fully absorbed the impact of higher tariff costs. There are other areas where we’ve had to pass some of those costs along.” But he added “tariff-impacted costs are continuing to drift upwards.” Even so, Rainey said Walmart hasn’t seen a change in customer spending. For example, sales of private label items, which typically cost less than national brands, were roughly flat year over year, he said." Read more | Press release [...]

  Home Depot Q2 comp sales +1.0% / US comp sales +1.4% "Revenue...climbed to $45.28 billion from $43.18 billion, but fell short of the $45.41 billion that analysts polled by FactSet were looking for...Customer transactions declined less than 1% in the quarter. The amount shoppers spent rose to $90.01 per average receipt from $88.90 in the prior-year period." Read more   Best Buy launches third-party marketplace as it looks for sales drivers at CNBC. "Jason Bonfig said...Best Buy noticed gaps in its assortment that the new platform will help it fill. For instance, he said the company didn’t carry batteries [...]

  Wholesale prices rose 0.9% in July, much more than expected at CNBC. "The producer price index, which measures final demand goods and services prices, jumped 0.9% on the month, compared to the Dow Jones estimate for a 0.2% gain. Excluding food and energy prices, core PPI rose 0.9% against the estimate for 0.3%. Excluding food, energy and trade, the index was up 0.6%, the biggest gain since March 2022." Read more   Advance Auto Parts Q2 comp sales +0.1% Press release   Tapestry, Inc. Q4 revenue +8.0% : Coach +14% / Kate Spade -13% Press release   Walmart broadens [...]

  Consumer prices rise 2.7% annually in July, less than expected amid tariff worries at CNBC   3 dead in shooting at Austin Target parking lot - Suspect arrested at KVUE ABC. "Davis said the suspect, a 32-year-old man with a history of mental health issues, fled the scene in a stolen car, then wrecked that car and stole another car. He was later taken into custody in South Austin after a Taser was used." Read more   Today on NBC Today show: Why Grocery Store Chain Aldi Has a Cult-Like Following "NBC’s Stephanie Gosk reports for TODAY on how [...]

  Costco July comp sales (ex. fuel & f/x) up 7.0%:   ...US +6.5%/Canada +9.1%/Other Int'l +7.5%/Ecom +14.9% "...net sales of $20.89 billion for the retail month of July, the four weeks ended August 3, 2025, an increase of 8.5 percent from $19.26 billion last year. Net sales for the first 48 weeks were $248.35 billion, an increase of 8.1 percent from $229.81 billion last year." Press release   Just return it: "Rent the runway” mindset is only spreading at USA Today. "A Costco employee who has worked with the company in multiple states says trees, inflatables and other holiday decor [...]

  Fortune Announces 2025 Fortune 100 Most Powerful People in Business List Jensen Huang, Founder and CEO, NVIDIA Satya Nadella, CEO and Chairman, Microsoft Mark Zuckerberg, CEO, Chairman, and Founder, Meta Elon Musk, CEO and Cofounder, and other roles, Tesla, SpaceX, xAI, and others Wang Chuanfu, CEO, Chairman, and Founder, BYD Sundar Pichai, CEO, Alphabet (Google) Ren Zhengfei, CEO and Founder, Huawei Technologies Sam Altman, CEO and Cofounder, OpenAI Jamie Dimon, CEO and Chairman, JPMorgan Chase Mary Barra, CEO and Chair, General Motors   ...Retail Power (Jassy #13 / Bezos #18 / McMillon #19) Fortune Top 100 list Fortune subs. [...]

  CVS beats Wall Street estimates in Q2 at Yahoo Finance. "...reported $98.9 billion in revenue, compared to estimates of $94.6 billion, and up 8.4% year over year. The adjusted earnings per share of $1.81 were above estimates of $1.46." Read more   EBay stock surges on earnings beat, rosy guidance at CNBC. "GMV, or the dollar value of items sold, grew 6% year over year to $19.5 billion. That topped analysts’ projected $18.9 billion..." Read more   Autonomous trucks are now driving highways at night, hauling food and dairy between Dallas and Houston at WSJ. "Aurora said its system [...]