Nov 28 (Reuters) – Teen clothing retailer American Eagle
Outfitters Inc said it was heading into a strong holiday
season as both its casual clothes and lingerie sold well, and
more customers shopped at its stores despite fewer discounts
than last year.

Shares of the company rose 8 percent Wednesday morning on
the New York Stock Exchange.

DHAKA/CHICAGO (Reuters) – Bangladesh said a fire that killed 111 textile workers was sabotage, as protesters took to the streets for a second day on Tuesday and garment factories across the world’s second-biggest clothes exporter stopped work to mourn.

Meanwhile two other incidents this week, neither of which caused injuries, had local manufacturing leaders scrambling to assess whether their industry was under attack.

DHAKA/CHICAGO, Nov 27 (Reuters) – Bangladesh said a fire
that killed 111 textile workers was sabotage, as protesters took
to the streets for a second day on Tuesday and garment factories
across the world’s second-biggest clothes exporter stopped work
to mourn.

Meanwhile two other incidents this week, neither of which
caused injuries, had local manufacturing leaders scrambling to
assess whether their industry was under attack.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – U.S. shoppers went to stores earlier this Thanksgiving weekend and bought online more than before, giving retailers a strong start to the holiday shopping season, data showed on Sunday.

The more successful retailers, analysts said, were companies such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Macy’s Inc, which did better at combining physical stores with their online and mobile channels into a seamless shopping experience.

CHICAGO, Nov 25 (Reuters) – U.S. shoppers went to stores
earlier and bought online more than before this Thanksgiving
weekend, giving retailers a strong start to the holiday shopping
season, data showed on Sunday.

Likely beneficiaries included retailers that have done a
better job of combining their physical stores with their online
and mobile channels into a seamless shopping experience,
analysts said, mentioning the likes of Wal-Mart Stores Inc
and Macy’s Inc.

By Nivedita Bhattacharjee

(Reuters) – Internet sales continued to grow through the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday weekend, feeding overall transactions even as traffic to stores likely slowed after a strong, early start.

In the latest sign of the growing importance of Internet-based retailing, comScore Inc said “Black Friday” online sales topped $1 billion for the first time, while IBM said online sales rose 16.9 percent year-over-year on Saturday.

By Nivedita Bhattacharjee

(Reuters) – Whether U.S. shoppers and workers like or loathe the encroachment of the holiday shopping season into Thanksgiving Day, one thing is for certain – the trend is not going away.

Even as stores fight charges of spreading holiday creep instead of cheer, retailers are making money out of moving the start of the holiday shopping season from “Black Friday” — the day after Thanksgiving — into Thanksgiving night, or even the Day itself.

Nov 15 (Reuters) – Gap Inc posted a bigger quarterly
profit on Thursday and quelled fears of a possible slowdown
ahead of the holiday season as the retailer raised its profit
view for the year, sending its shares up 3 percent after the
bell.

The owner of the Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic chains
expects to earn between $2.20 to $2.25 a share, up from its
August forecast of $1.95 to $2.

By Nivedita Bhattacharjee

(Reuters) – Robust demand in foreign markets helped Abercrombie & Fitch Co (ANF.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) report unexpectedly improved third-quarter profit and a full-year outlook that exceeded analysts’ estimates, sending shares up as much as 30 percent on Wednesday.

The retailer expects to earn $2.85-$3.00 a share for the full year. Analysts, on average, expect the company to earn $2.48 a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Nov 14 (Reuters) – Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch Co
soared more than 30 percent in premarket trading after the teen
clothing retailer reported improved third-quarter profit
Wednesday on demand in foreign markets and a full-year forecast
that exceeded analysts’ estimates.

Still, the improved performance doesn’t signal the end of
Abercrombie’s troubles, analyst Brian Sozzi of NBG Productions
said.