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NATION
Wal-Mart approval rating is slipping, poll shows
According to a poll released today by Wake Up Wal-Mart, an
anti-Wal-Mart group launched this year by the United Food and Commercial Workers union, more Americans have an unfavorable view of Wal-Mart now than at the start of the year.
The poll showed that a majority, 58 percent, viewed Wal-Mart favorably, but the figure was down from 76 percent in January. Wake Up Wal-Mart said that was proof that its message against the company's low-price business model is hitting its intended target -- the average Wal-Mart shopper.
"What this polling indicates is that Wal-Mart's reputation is in a tailspin," said Paul Blank, campaign director at Wake Up Wal-Mart.
Blank said changes in behavior would follow if consumer's opinions about Wal-Mart continue to fall.
Wal-Mart said the survey was questionable and argued that November sales and an onslaught of holiday shoppers the day after Thanksgiving showed it remained popular.
Retail analyst Don Gher said Wal-Mart's monthly sales growth did not suggest that shoppers were staying away amid a slew of attacks by groups alleging that Wal-Mart's low prices come at the cost of poor treatment for its workers, suppliers and communities.
WORLD
India's economy grows 8.1 percent
NEW DELHI » India's economy expanded 8.1 percent in the April-September period compared to a year ago, lifted by strong manufacturing and buoyant growth in tourism and financial services, the government said yesterday.
The figure for the fiscal half-year surprised many analysts, who had expected growth to slow through the year because of high oil prices and suspected sluggish exports.
But government data showed manufacturing growth averaged 10.2 percent during the period despite a slowdown in the second quarter, while services continued to remain as robust. Financial and real estate services grew 9.1 percent in the six-month period from a year ago.
The latest update came a day after Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh predicted 7.5 percent growth for the current fiscal year through March 2006, and said the country should aim to accelerate the pace to 10 percent in two to three years.
Singh said his government was giving a big push to agriculture, which has long been a drag on the broader economy.
Canceled order hurts Bombardier
Bombardier Inc. posted its first loss in six quarters after
Northwest Airlines Corp. canceled an aircraft order and the company incurred costs from job cuts at its train operations. Shares of the world's No. 3 plane maker dropped 6.6 percent.
The third-quarter net loss of $9 million, or 1 cent a share, compares with net income of $10 million, or break-even on a per-share basis, a year earlier. Revenue in the quarter ended Oct. 31 dropped a greater-than-anticipated 7.3 percent to $3.34 billion, Montreal-based Bombardier said yesterday in a statement.
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