TOP NEWS
* U.S. home improvement retailer Home Depot Inc. has earmarked $1.2 billion over the next five years to overhaul its supply chain, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing an interview with Mark Holifield, the company's executive vice president of supply chain and product development. The company reportedly plans to open 170 distribution sites in the U.S. and to construct about seven e-commerce fulfillment centers.
* French retailer Casino Guichard-Perrachon SA said it will carry out a €1.5 billion asset disposal plan, with an aim to reduce its net debt in France by about €1 billion by year-end. Casino said it identified noncore assets in its portfolio, including real estate, that could be sold. It expects half of the disposals to be completed this year, with the other half done in early 2019.
TEXTILES, APPAREL AND LUXURY GOODS
* Rimowa, the luxury travel brand of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, teamed up with apparel retailer Off-White to make transparent carry-on cases. The suitcase will be unveiled June 25 at select Rimowa and Off-White stores and on multiple digital platforms.
MULTILINE RETAIL
* U.K. department store chain Marks and Spencer Group PLC said Humphrey Singer, who was appointed CFO in January to succeed Helen Weir, will take up the position and join the company board July 9. Humphrey will work closely with CEO Steve Rowe.
E-COMMERCE
* Amazon.com Inc. said its Prime subscribers can now use thet Prime Now app to access free two-hour delivery of natural and organic products from Whole Foods Market Inc. in Baltimore; Boston; Philadelphia; and Richmond, Va. The announcement comes just a day after the e-commerce giant expanded its Prime discount program at Whole Foods to 10 new states in U.S.
HOUSEHOLD AND PERSONAL PRODUCTS
* Luxembourg-based cosmetics company L'Occitane International SA reported that business for full year 2018 was negatively affected by the U.S. tax reform and foreign currency translation. For the year ended March 31, the company's EPS decreased to €0.07 from €0.09 last year, missing the S&P Capital IQ consensus normalized EPS estimate of €0.08 for 2018. L'Occitane also posted an operating margin of 10.7% for the year.
* Hindustan Unilever Ltd., the Indian arm of Unilever NV, partnered with Amazon.com Inc. to develop a line of grooming products for men under the Brylcreem brand, The Economic Times (India) reported. Sandeep Kohli, executive director of personal care at Hindustan Unilever, reportedly said the move marks the company's debut in the beard grooming segment. The new product range will be sold exclusively on Amazon.
* Consumer industry-focused private equity firm L Catterton, formerly known as Catterton Partners, and European private equity firm Ambienta SGR SpA agreed to acquire plastic packaging company Pibiplast for an undisclosed sum. Italy-based Pibiplast provides personal care plastic packaging solutions for beauty and personal care products.
* Cosmetics brand Covergirl, owned by Coty Inc., will open its first flagship store in New York's Times Square in the fall of 2018. The 10,000-square-feet store will have an experiential beauty playroom and will offer full-service makeup application, on-the-go services and digital experiences.
* German household products producer Henkel AG & Co. KGaA pledged to invest about €5 million into the second investment fund of Shanghai-based venture capital firm China Materialia LLC. The move allows Henkel's Adhesive Technologies business unit to tap into the market of advanced materials start-ups in China and other Asian countries.
* Olaplex won a patent infringement case against L'Oréal SA in London after the California-based haircare startup alleged that the French cosmetic company's Smartbond range infringed the U.K. patent of its Olaplex Bond Multiplier products, the Financial Times reported, citing an email from Olaplex lawyers Hogan Lovells. L'Oréal reportedly approached Olaplex for a takeover offer, during which it got access to nonpublic confidential proprietary information, but talks fell through in September 2015. The report added that L'Oréal said it disagrees with the decision and will apply for permission to appeal.
HYPERMARKETS AND SUPERCENTERS
* French retail chain Carrefour SA said it teamed up with Alphabet Inc.'s Google for online grocery shopping in France using the U.S. tech giant's platforms. The partnership enables customers to buy Carrefour's products using Google Assistant, connected speakers and a new Google shopping site from early 2019. Carrefour also will open an innovation lab with Google Cloud in Paris this summer, where the retail chain's team will work with Google's artificial intelligence experts for new consumer experiences.
HOUSEHOLD DURABLES AND SPECIALTY RETAIL
* Rent-A-Center Inc. said it received an increased acquisition offer from one of the parties previously involved in its sale process. This comes just hours after the Texas-based rent-to-own retailer announced that its board concluded a review of strategic and financial alternatives and decided to continue with the company's current strategic plan. Rent-A-Center also said at the time that it did not receive any purchase proposals that met the board's objectives for a sale.
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The day ahead
Early morning futures indicators pointed to a lower opening for the U.S. market.
In Asia, Hang Seng gained 0.13% to 31,103.06, while the Nikkei 225 rose 0.33% to 22,878.35.
In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 dropped 0.29% to 7,715.36, and the Euronext 100 shed 0.13% to 1,063.03.
On the macro front
The National Federation of Independent Business' Small Business Optimism Index, the Consumer Price Index and the Redbook Index are due out today.
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