Market Trends

BERLIN - Wal-Mart announced has begun implementing a new round of discounts at its German stores in its latest attempt to attract shoppers in a market where it has yet to turn a profit, The Associated Press reports.

WASHINGTON - Sixteen manufacturers and retailers joined the Grocery Manufacturers of America and the Food Marketing Institute in urging the CPG industry to adopt the UCCnet data registry as the North America standard for electronic data sharing.

NEW YORK - Kroger Co. today said it reaffirmed its fiscal 2002 forecast of 10 percent to 12 percent earnings per share growth, helped by strong sales of high-margin private label food and household items, Reuters reports.

MINNEAPOLIS - Supervalu Inc. has reached an agreement to acquire Deal$ - Nothing Over a Dollar, LLC, a 45-store general merchandise retailer specializing in single price point merchandise with current annualized revenues of approximately $75 million.

ORLANDO, Fla. - Fresh Brands' executive vice president Michael Houser and Wal-Mart's senior vice president of food merchandising John Westling will headline next week's inaugural SAMMY reception here.

LONDON - Shareholders in fast-food chain McDonald's will soon be given the chance to vote on whether the company should introduce animal welfare standards worldwide, the BBC reports.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Progressive Grocer magazine and General Merchandise Distributors Council (GMDC) will honor merchandising excellence in the General Merchandise categories with the second annual Pinnacle Awards.

LONDON - The Coca-Cola Co. is planning to launch a new vanilla-flavored Coke drink, the Financial Times reported on Monday.