Report: Retail Sales Up, But Margins Drop

Even though we are in a global recession, the largest retailers in the world still found a way to increase sales by 5.5% in the 2008 fiscal year, which ended in June, according to a Deliotte Touche Tohmatsu report.But at the same time, profitability fell from 3.7% to 2.4%, the report says. And of that 30 of the largest retailers operated at a loss during the period.Also, the largest retailers switched places. Walmart retains its spot as the largest retailer by total sales, with French company Carrefour taking the second spot. But British retailer Tesco fell from third place to fourth, getting overtaken by German firm Metro.The report has Kroger as the second-largest US retailer, in sixth place, followed by the Home Depot which came in seventh place globally.ALSO, Foot Locker is the first chain this year to announced major store closures.