Wal-Mart defies the crisis

Wal-Mart was able to increase sales in the 2008/09 financial year (to 31 January) by 7.2 per cent to US $ 401.2 bn. Same-store sales in the USA experienced growth of 3.3 per cent. Foreign sales recorded an increase of 9.6 per cent (11.6 per cent in constant currency) to US $ 98 bn. The biggest global retailer shows an increase of 3.9 per cent in operating income. Net earnings per share rose by 6 per cent over the previous year to US $ 3.35.