TRIVIA

Last week was one to forget in the US retail sector. Supply issues and higher costs impacted sales and earnings at major retailers such as GAP, Best Buy, and Nordstrom, whose reports fell well short of market expectations.

How much did these companies lose in market capitalization during this black week?

A) US$1 billion

B) US$5 billion

C) US$10 billion

D) US$15 billion

ANSWER

C) The market capitalization of these companies is around US$10 billion. Best Buy alone lost US$5.2 billion after reporting worse-than-expected margins. Not all companies in the sector fared poorly, however, with firms such as Guess and Dollar Tree Inc reporting better-than-expected results and seeing significant gains in their share prices. Now, a sign of the times: Dollar Tree raised the standard price of its products from US$1 to US$1.25, which helped its results but inflamed social media against the retailer.