Starbucks releases preliminary results, says sales fell again

Starbucks on Tuesday posted preliminary quarterly results that showed its sales fell again as the coffee chain tries to execute a turnaround. “Our fourth quarter performance makes it clear that we need to fundamentally change our strategy so we can get back to growth and that’s exactly what we are doing with our ‘Back to Starbucks’ plan,” CEO Brian…

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Retail sales rose 0.4% in September, better than expected; jobless claims dip

Consumer spending held up in September, underscoring a resilient economy that is now getting a boost from the Federal Reserve, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. Retail sales increased a seasonally adjusted 0.4% on the month, up from the unrevised 0.1% gain in August and better than the 0.3% Dow Jones forecast, according to the advance report. Excluding autos, sales…

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