Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart stores in the Chinese city of Chongqing reopened to surging crowds today, two weeks after being shut down by local authorities for violating food and product standards. 

Wal-Mart is scaling back health care coverage for future part-time workers and raising premiums for some full-time workers. The giant retailer says rising health care costs are forcing it to eliminate health care coverage for future part-time workers who work less than 24 hours a week.

Coming soon to your local Wal-Mart: more craft beer. In another sign that the fast-growing segment is going mainstream, the nation's largest retailer and biggest beer seller is planning to add shelf space to accommodate more craft brews, former Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott told distributors this week at their annual convention in Las Vegas.

Cape Town, South Africa -- A Thursday report by Bloomberg said that South Africa’s Competition Appeal Court began hearing a government lawsuit filed to compel regulators to review a decision allowing Wal-Mart Stores to acquire 51% interest in Massmart Holdings Ltd. The Competition Tribunal ruled on May 31 that Wal-Mart could proceed with the deal on condition no jobs are cut for two years and the companies set up a $12.4 million fund to assist local suppliers and manufacturers. The government objected, saying the conditions were inadequate to protect the economy and prevent a surge in imports undermining manufacturing

Wal-Mart expects toys to be best-sellers this holiday season as its toy prices are lower than competitors Target and Kmart, according to a Bloomberg Industries analysis.

Wal-Mart said Ed Chan, president of its China operations, quit as the company grapples with a pork labeling probe that shut all 13 of its stores in Chongqing and led to the detention of at least 27 people.

Wal-Mart is getting another public bludgeoning in China as anger over food safety and political fighting make the retail giant a convenient target. Authorities in the city of Chongqing have arrested two employees, closed down 13 Wal-Mart stores for two weeks and fined the company $421,000.

A group of Wal-Mart employees seeking better wages and working conditions marched on the retailer's headquarters Oct. 12 but said they were turned away without meeting with company officials. Around 100 members of Organization United for Respect at Walmart (OUR Walmart) said they assembled so as to "offer solutions for improving the company's ailing U.S. store operations," on the same day of the company's annual investor conference.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Wal-Mart (WMT) Speaking at Wal-Mart's annual meeting Wednesday, Bill Simon, head of Wal-Mart U.S., noted an increase in traffic at stores, led by its food business. Simon said that the July, August and September momentum doesn't necessarily add up to a quarter. There are still two weeks left to the period, so it is still too early to tell which way the pendulum will swing.

Wal-Mart is launching a Facebook app that customizes marketing for each of its nearly 3,600 U.S. stores, allowing tailored communications about local deals, events or limited-distribution products. Eventually, Wal-Mart also hopes to use the My Local Walmart app to grow its site-to-store e-commerce program and evolve it into an individualized marketing program.