Check out Kraft’s cash hoard.

Kraft had almost $3 billion of cash on its books at the end of the third quarter, roughly four times what it had a year ago.

The world’s second-largest food maker might have disappointed
analysts with its third quarter sales and a profit outlook that implied a weaker-than-expected fourth quarter.  But when it comes to its battle to win Cadbury, at least the company is generating cash – expenses cuts helped Kraft generate $2.7 billion in cash in the first 9 months of 2009.

Also, Reuters Loan Pricing Corp reported on Tuesday that Kraft has arranged $9 billion in financing for a bid.

Sources have told Reuters that Kraft is not likely to raise its initial bid for Cadbury if it makes a formal offer by the Nov. 9 deadline. But analysts do think that shifting the offer to more cash and less Kraft stock — which is down 3 percent on Wednesday after the company posted lackluster third-quarter sales — could be a step in the right direction.

Also in the basket:

Warnaco beats estimates; Liz Claiborne misses

Molson Coors higher profit tops view, shares rise

M&S sees no repeat of blanket pre-Christmas promotions

Talking shop with Isaac Mizrahi (WWD)

(Reuters photo)

Check Out this prediction about Black Friday deals.

Black Friday, the day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday that typically kicks off the holiday shopping season, is known for some of the best discounts of the year, both in stores and on the Web.

And its never too early to think about deals, as illustrated by dealsnews.com, which has compiled a list of what it predicts will be the best holiday deals to emerge between mid-November and “Cyber Monday” — the Monday after Thanksgiving when office workers go online en masse to shop for specials.

This year’s list kicks of with expected deals on netbooks, which are inexpensive and compact laptops suited for basic computing and surfing the Internet.

Dealsnews predicted that a Linux-based netbook with 9-inch screen will be as cheap as $129, while pricier models would be ”well-equipped” $399 netbooks with 15.4-inch screens.

If you are in the market for a flat-screen TV, the Web site predicted that you are likely to find an abundance of deals. TVs traditionally are one of the top-selling items around the holidays since retailers offer deep discounts on them. This year, a 40-inch or 42-inch LCD high-definition TV could be as cheap as $449 while the bigger brand-name one with 52-inch screen could be on the market for $1,049, the Web site showed.

The site also said shoppers should be able to snag good deals on Blu-ray players, and items like digital photo frames.

Also in the basket:

Target moves to declassify board

P&G sees sales rising in second quarter

Dollar General profit more than triples

(Photo/Reuters)

Check Out Wal-Mart’s move into Chile. 

The world’s largest retailer said on Friday that it was successful with its tender offer to acquire Chile’s largest supermarket chain Distribucion y Servicio D&S S.A., winning a strong base in the local market and likely sparking retail competition in the area. In 2008, Chile’s antitrust tribunal nixed a proposed takeover of D&S by regional retailer Falabella.

Wal-Mart’s move comes at a time when acquisitions or takeovers have been few and far between as companies struggle to secure financing for such deals.

The Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer, one of the few bright spots in the U.S. retail landscape in the past year, launched its bid for all of the issued and outstanding shares in D&S, including American Depositary Shares, in December.

Wal-Mart said it secured about a 58.2 percent stake in the Chilean company.

Also in the basket:

Rite Aid gets loan to aid with financing changes

ABInBev sells down stake in Tsintao to Asahi

Few white knights emerge for bankrupt retailers

Amazon may be wounded winner in grim holiday season

Barney’s may be sold by Dubai-based owner - Bloomberg

(Photo/Reuters)

Online retailer Overstock.com is pitching a rescue package for shoppers who are neck-deep in debt.

The company’s “Family Bailout” contest will pay off up to $50,000 in debt belonging to the winner or a member of his or her immediate family. The money gets paid directly to “qualified” creditors like mortgage or credit card companies.

The retailer, which sells excess inventory of clothes, furniture and other items, automatically enters people in the contest when they make an order. People who are too broke to shop or those who want to have the company bail out a friend, can fill out an online form on the site.

“We’re sinking into the most challenging economic environment since the
Great Depression,” said Patrick Byrne, Overstock.com’s chairman and CEO. “This
is our way of lending a helping hand to those that need it.”

Overstock’s move is just the latest effort by a retailer to entice shoppers as the industry heads into what could be its most dismal holiday sales season since the early 1990s.

Amazon.com is already running ads touting deals for a limited time. Items on sale on Monday included a Nikon Coolpix 10-megapixel digital camera for $146.95 (a savings of  $53, according to the website).

Online jeweler Blue Nile began offering a personalized shopping service to help find or order jewelry — a segment that has taken a painful blow from consumer cutbacks in the past few months. The company is betting good customer service is crucial to winning over consumers this holiday season.

The Internet shopping wars are on — may one lucky consumer win some credit relief.

(Graphic/Overstock.com)

As consumer prices rise and the economy founders, Web surfers are scouring cyberspace for deals.

A new study released this week by market research firm Hitwise showed that online coupon clipping is on the rise.

Hitwise told Reuters that U.S. visits to certain custom coupon Web sites increased 66 percent from May 2007 to May of this year.

Heather Dougherty, research director at Hitwise, said shoppers are trying to cope with cost of living increases.

“While discretionary income is shrinking for some households, consumers are still shopping online, but making sure they find the best deals,” she said in a statement.

Coupons.com led the pack within the category, grabbing 29 percent of the market and chalking up a 190 percent increase since last year.  Coupon Mountain and Eversave rounded out the top three with 14 percent and 6 percent, respectively.

When Hitwise measured traffic from the week ending June 6, they found that search engines directed 20 percent of penny-pinching shoppers to coupon sites. Of the top search terms, 60 percent included a reference to a specific brand or branded product.

Monthly visits to comparison shopping Web sites also increased 60 percent from May 2007 to May of this year, Hitwise spokesman Matt Tatham said.

Looking for a bargain? Here are some other coupon sites:

• Coolsavings.com
• Couponsurfer.com
• Valpak.com
• grocerycouponguide.com

Check out Staples’ higher offer for Corporate Express.

The U.S. office supplies retailer offered to buy the Dutch company for $2.65 billion – up from its previous unsolicited offer of about $2.34 billion — even as Corporate Express is trying to fight off the takeover bid with a bid of its own.

The Dutch company said in May that it would buy French rival Lyreco for about $2.2 billion, creating the largest business-to-business distributor of office supplies in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific.

On Tuesday, Staples raised its offer, contingent on Corporate Express shareholders rejecting the Lyreco bid. Corporate Express said it would carefully review Staples’ offer and respond in due course.

Analysts think the U.S. retailer’s bid might bear fruit this time around, although Corporate Express could still try to delay it.

Also in the basket:

Anheuser-Busch hires financial advisers

U.S. chain store sales fall 0.8 percent last week - ICSC

Walmart.com offers free classified ads

(Photo: Reuters)

Check out a different weak market for retailers.
 
Not only are retailers having trouble selling merchandise, they are also having trouble selling themselves.
 
The days of the buyout boom, when the underlying value of real estate attracted buyers to retail assets is gone, analysts and bankers told Reuters.
 
But there could be value for some investors.
 
“These markets will also create opportunistic deals for people willing to dig deep, do some research and wait for a longer payout. The days of sprucing up an asset for a quick flip are over for now,” said one retail investment banker, who declined to be named.
 
“There’s a lot of folks looking, but not necessarily pulling the trigger,” the banker said.
 
 
Also in the basket:
 
Blockbuster’s Circuit City bid deemed Netflix boon
 
Retailers get stingy with data (N.Y. Times)
 
LVHM Bullish on U.S. (WWD)
 
Supervalu 4th-quarter profit rises, sales edge up

(Photo: Reuters)

Fred Katayama visits a Wal-mart just outside New York City to see how consumers socked with high gas prices and a sputtering economy are changing the way they shop. His full report hits the reuters.com website on Friday. It’s part of a Reuters multimedia presentation in text, video and pictures.