It appears that there is not much chance for makers of TVs, PCs, and video game systems to have a good holiday season. The consumer's pocket book is empty. Consumer electronics are relatively expensive and they are not items that anyone has to have while the recession roles on.
Enter Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), perhaps the only retailer large enough to change the course of fourth quarter sales for the electronics industry. The question is whether a company, even one as large as Wal-Mart. can make a difference with buyers who may spend as little as possible for the holiday?
According to CNN Money, "Wal-Mart is highlighting flat screen TVs, Blu-ray players, Xbox 360 consoles, and home computers in its much-anticipated Black Friday deals this year."
The news would seem to be positive for the consumer electronics industry, but a look at the numbers shows that it may not be be a terribly big deal. Of Wal-Mart's $97 billion in third quarter revenue, $61 billion came from its U.S. stores. If TVs, PCs, and video games are 1% of the big retailer's sales, that is "only" $610 million. Dell (NASDAQ: DELL), one of dozens of companies selling products in Wal-Mart, has quarterly revenue of over $16 billion. That means that the Wal-Mart sales are spread over so many large companies that even its heft may make very little difference.
No matter what Wal-Mart does, it will hardly make a dent in the troubled consumer electronics industry.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-16-2008 @ 3:21AM
monicajoshi said...
game & electronic consumer and entertainment pakages
12-04-2008 @ 11:58PM
madmilker said...
People in America need to realize jus what got America in this shape..."cheap" yes so-call cheap items from a foreign land.
quote*Wal-Mart firmly believes in local procurement. We recognize that by purchasing quality products, we can generate more job opportunities, support local manufacturing and boost economic development. Over 95% of the merchandise in our stores in China is sourced locally. We have established partnerships with nearly 20,000 suppliers in China. *end quote!
Now! if there be 182 country's making items for the world to buy and they have only 5% of the pie in China...duh! This company makes the nice people of China support their currency(yuan) by keeping it in their country working for the people there.... but with the "yuan" going up in value and the US dollar going down...all the foreign items that the American consumer buys thinking it is cheap has went up in price.
People...its all about the currency and to keep a currency strong you got to keep it floating around the country you live in so it can work for you. For the past 12 years all them US dollars are being shipped overseas to a foreign bank and with the American worker not making anything for the foreigner to buy the "we the people" have to turn to the "second" largest employer in America(Uncle Sam) to sell "we the people" debt in order to get all them dollars back!
50 years ago a foreigner would had given their left nut for a US dollar or a Hershey's chocolate bar and today the same foreigner has got Uncle Sam and the American consumer by both all the while Hershey is moving the chocolate factory to Mexico. Wake up! America and think "MADE IN AMERICA."