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On May 26th, Guangzhou held a press conference to announce a series of supporting documents for the "Implementation Opinions on Further Promoting the Stable and Healthy Development of the Real Estate Market." Qian Zhe, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and General Manager of Guangzhou Anju Group, introduced that to support residents in improving their housing conditions and facilitate the exchange of new and used housing, Anju Group will immediately launch a pilot program to support residents in "selling old homes and buying new ones." The pilot program will run until December 31, 2026, and will acquire second-hand residential properties through market-oriented methods, adhering to the principles of "government guidance, market operation, and voluntary participation." The pilot program targets second-hand residential properties with a total price of less than 3 million RMB, a building area of less than 70 square meters, located within the Guangzhou Ring Expressway, with no age limit on the buildings. The acquired properties will be prioritized for use in affordable housing, talent apartments, and other purposes, primarily serving the housing needs of new urban residents, young people, and residents relocating from urban renewal projects.On May 26, it was reported that on May 25, the Party Committee of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC) held an enlarged meeting and a collective study session of the Party Committees theoretical learning center group. The meeting emphasized that state-owned enterprises should continue to improve the institutional mechanisms for carrying out statistical work in a standardized manner, further tighten and implement the responsibility for preventing and combating statistical fraud, and hold those responsible for statistical fraud accountable. It stressed the need to firmly safeguard the lifeline of statistical data quality, effectively prevent and rectify the problem of false financial and accounting information, and strictly prevent and crack down on financial fraud. It also emphasized the need to establish and improve a comprehensive, full-process, and all-element penetrating supervision mechanism to achieve real-time monitoring and dynamic early warning of data from central enterprises.Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama: Fluctuations in the oil market are affecting foreign exchange and financial markets.On May 26th, Guangzhou held a press conference for a series of supporting documents related to the "Implementation Opinions on Further Promoting the Stable and Healthy Development of the Real Estate Market." Mai Shaoming, Deputy District Mayor of Huadu District, Guangzhou, introduced that after the implementation of the "Guangzhou Eight Measures," Huadu District took the lead in the city by issuing its own "Huadu Eight Measures." Following the implementation of the new policy, the real estate market in Huadu District has seen a continuous rebound in activity and a surge in transaction activity. Project visits, subscriptions, policy inquiries, and secondary market transactions have all increased significantly. Policy inquiries focused on core aspects such as pre-sale school placement, online contract signing for school enrollment, and subsidies for trade-ins, resulting in an overall positive trend of "increased volume, stable prices, and active transactions."On May 26, the State Council Information Office held a press conference on the 2026 Qingdao Summit for Multinational Corporation Leaders. Vice Minister of Commerce Yan Dong stated that efforts will be strengthened to provide full-cycle services and create a "new benchmark" for the business environment. We will implement a series of policies to encourage reinvestment by foreign-invested enterprises in China, fully implement national treatment for foreign-invested enterprises, and support their participation in activities such as boosting consumption, government procurement, and bidding on an equal footing. We will continue to hold roundtables for foreign-invested enterprises, continuously update the list of key foreign investment projects, and carry out "service and support for foreign-invested enterprises" activities to ensure that foreign-invested enterprises are "willing to come, able to stay, and thrive."

Costco Margins Are Impacted by Growing Freight And Labor Expenses, And The Stock Price Falls

Charlie Brooks

May 27, 2022 09:50

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Costco Wholesale Corp (NASDAQ:COST) announced a decline in gross margins on Thursday, impacted by rising freight and labor expenses across the United States. The news sent shares of the membership-only retailer down 2% and overshadowed an otherwise positive quarterly report.


Fresh COVID-19 lockdowns in China and the Russia-Ukraine conflict have compounded the problem for U.S. businesses.


Costco announced that it would increase prices in certain food categories in order to battle inflation.


Retailers such as Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Inc and Target Corp (NYSE:TGT) have warned that decades-high inflation will have a negative impact on their earnings, as shoppers hesitate from purchasing non-essential and high-margin goods.


The average Costco buyer earns more than the average Walmart and Target shopper, allowing Costco to generate quarterly earnings and revenue that easily exceeds expectations.


Memberships and sales have been boosted by the company's efforts to keep gas prices several cents below the national average.


Costco, in contrast to Walmart, reported that there has not been a significant shift from branded products to its private label product, Kirkland Signature.


"We aren't really observing a decline in commerce. This year, more money is being spent on tickets, dining out, travel, tires, and gasoline "In a post-earnings conference call, Robert Nelson, senior vice president of finance and investor relations, said.


Costco's gross margins decreased by 99 basis points in the third quarter.


According to data from Refinitiv IBES, Costco's total sales for the quarter ending May 8 increased by 16 percent to $52.60 billion, surpassing analysts' projections of $51.71 billion.


Excluding adjustments, Costco's earnings per share were $3.17, exceeding analysts' expectations of $3.03.