By
Reuters
Reuters
Published
Apr 16, 2009
Apr 16, 2009
Wal-Mart CEO doesn't see a quick end to recession
By
Reuters
Reuters
Published
Apr 16, 2009
Apr 16, 2009
Mike Duke |
"There's still a lot of stress," Wal-Mart CEO Mike Duke said on NBC's "Today Show."
"It's not a 'V' recession, where we're just going to bounce out and come back," he said.
Duke made the comments a day after a government report showed that sales at U.S. retailers unexpectedly fell 1.1 percent in March, and came after Wal-Mart last week reported a lower-than-expected rise in March sales at U.S. stores open at least a year.
The reports have dimmed hopes that the U.S. recession is close to hitting bottom, and show consumers are unswayed from their new frugal mind-set.
Duke said that by the end of the month, just before traditional paydays, customers are left with only a few dollars to spend.
He said the downturn will lead to a "sustained change" in the way that families live.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan and Nicole Maestri, editing by Gerald E. McCormick and Maureen Bavdek)
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