Wal-Mart Closing

Is it a sign of the deep economic trouble we are in when a giant like Wal-Mart begins closing their doors? In the United States this week, they announced the closing of a store that had been a large part of a small community for 35 years. The effects on this small town in Arkansas are sure to be tremendous when you take into account not only the jobs that will be lost but also the revenue.

This was the main retail store for the town and now those dollars will be spent 30 miles away in another community. When you factor in the turnover rate of every dollar spent, it is estimated that every dollar turns over in a local economy 7 times; you get a feeling for just how big an impact this will be.

On the heels of this announcement were further closings in Canada. The retail giant had opened 6 Sams club stores in Canada in 2003 all of which are being closed this year. Some speculate that the wholesale clubs were merely a way for Wal-Mart to test the waters and see what kind of reception their super centers would receive.

An experiment that has gone very well, experts say. While they are planning to close the membership-based facilities, they are also planning to open 26 new supercenters this year and more in following years. The new stores will create 5,000 construction jobs and 5,000 store openings.

Store closings may be in the headlines but all other indicators show Wal-Mart consistently doing well on the stock market. They are one of the few companies that are seeing little downturn in stock prices during these tough economic times.

Top analysts have advised to put your money in the top companies on the market. Concentrate your investments in companies like Wal-Mart, Google and Microsoft because if these fail you will have a lot more to worry about than just the money you have lost in the market.