Check out more bad news in the retail sector.

U.S. retail sales slumped for the second straight month, coming in weaker than analysts had expected due to sluggish gasoline and electronic goods purchases. Meanwhile, U.S. foreclosure activity in April jumped to a record high, further pressuring home prices and making a recovery tougher.

Fashion company Liz Claiborne posted a deeper-than-expected quarterly loss as retail sales remained weak in the recession. The owner of Juicy Couture, Kate Spade, Lucky Brand and Mexx labels is cutting jobs, scaling back expansion and offering more lower priced items to combat the slowdown.

Meanwhile, General Growth chose a company to provide its bankruptcy financing. The No. 2 U.S. mall owner filed for bankruptcy in April when it could not refinance its maturing loans due to tightness in the credit markets.

Even overseas, retailers in emerging economies are opening special shops for the poor as the recession squeezes the fledgling middle classes.

Some companies are benefiting from the consumer cutbacks, however, as General Mills, a maker of cereal, yogurt and soup, said it expects consumers who have been eating more meals at home to keep doing it even after the economy recovers.

And consumers obviously love their soft drinks as Dr Pepper Snapple reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit on demand for value-priced drinks.

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(Reuters photo)

Check Out quarterly results at General Mills.

The maker of Progresso soups, Hamburger Helper and Green Giant frozen vegetables posted a disappointing profit for its fiscal third quarter. Even its slightly higher full-year outlook is below Wall Street’s expectations.

But here’s an interesting twist — the company saw strong sales of cereals, soups, frozen vegetables and refrigerated dough during the quarter, in a continuing trend whereby consumers are eating more meals at home to save some money in the recession. But while that helped sales in the U.S. retail segment, the bakery and food service segment languished, as consumer thrift led to fewer trips to restaurants and cafeterias.

Still, the company is working to capitalize on consumers’ new habits. Later this year, General Mills will unveil new items across categories as it tries to entice shoppers to buy its brands, CEO Ken Powell said in an interview.

* Today’s speakers at the Reuters Food and Agriculture Summit 2009 include Panera Bread Co-Chief Operating Officer William Moreton, Constellation Brands CEO Robert Sands, and Monsanto executives Brett Begemann and David Stark.

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(Photo/General Mills website)

Check out those higher prices at the grocery store helping General Mills and ConAgra to post quarterly results above Wall Street expectations.

Both food makers reported lower profits on a net basis.

But excluding various items, their earnings were stronger than analysts were expecting.

General Mills, the maker of Progresso soup and Cheerios cereal, has benefited along with other food companies as consumers buy more soup, cake mixes and yogurt to save money by eating at home more often. 

It raised its full-year forecast.

ConAgra was helped by strong results at its commercial foods business, which sells specialty potatoes, seasonings and other items.

But while General Mills was able to raise prices and sell more retail food in the United States, ConAgra saw sales volume fall in its consumer good business, hurt by weakness at its Banquet frozen dinner and Wesson cooking oil brands.

The maker of Chef Boyardee canned pasta and Orville Redenbacher popcorn stood by its full-year forecast for earnings slightly above $1.50 a share, excluding one-time items.

ConAgra said it expects improvement in the consumer foods business, especially in the fiscal fourth quarter.

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(Photos: Screenshots from the websites of ConAgra, General Mills)

Check out more bad news for retailers headed into the holiday season.

On Friday, fresh data showed the U.S. economy shed 240,000 jobs in October, worse than the 200,000 decline that was forecast. The Labor Department said the national unemployment rate shot up to 6.5 percent from 6.1 percent in September — the highest since March 1994.

That disappointing report came a day after U.S. retail chains reported their worst October sales results in 35 years.

“October was a disaster of epic proportions for most of the retailing community, as continued economic negatives resulted in a ’shopping strike’ by consumers and led to material misses by a number of key players and a decidedly more cautious outlook from virtually every player in the apparel sector,” wrote Eric Beder, a retail analyst for Brean Murray, Carret & Co.

Meanwhile, a new Consumer Reports holiday shopping poll found that 76 percent of Americans plan to cut back on spending on holiday expenses like gifts, travel, entertaining and decorations. Among the holiday spending cutbacks, 59 percent said they will be giving fewer gifts, and nearly half said they will be cutting their travel plans.

The weak reports are all darkening the outlook for holiday sales, which were never expected to be great. Now consumers can expect retailers to roll out a plethora of deals and discounts to grab whatever portion of a shopper’s wallet they can get this holiday.

On Friday, Wal-Mart’s Sams’ Club said that starting Nov. 14, non-members who sign up in any location nationwide before Nov. 26 will receive a $10 Sam’s Club gift card. The gift card is good for purchases in its clubs starting Nov. 28, the day after Thanksgiving, when Sam’s Club will open at 5 a.m. and provide a free breakfast through 8 a.m. 

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(Photo: Reuters)

Check out rising profit at General Mills

The maker of Cheerios cereal, Green Giant vegetables and Yoplait yogurt said cost cuts and worldwide demand aided results in its third quarter. Sales rose 16 percent in both its snacks and baking products divisions and 14 percent for Yoplait.

Still, not all is rosy in this challenging economic environment. General Mills expects higher input costs in the current quarter and said it plans to invest in consumer marketing to help drive sales.

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(Photo: General Mills image library)