Retail

Wesfarmers has suffered a 58 per cent drop in full-year net profit after taking more than $1.3 billion in costs and losses on its disastrous Bunnings UK exit and a $300 million write-down on underperforming Target, while also announcing leadership changes at its department stores.

Wesfarmers has struck a deal to sell its Kmart Tyre and Auto Service (KTAS) business to German company Continental AG for $350 million.

Wesfarmers has announced it anticipates the demerger of Coles to be completed by the end of November, after the company’s annual general meeting, and will seek to retain a 15 per cent stake of the business.

Two high-end restaurants will join a 12-screen cinema as tenants in the $75 million Raine Square redevelopment project, the first stage of which is set to open in September.

Woolworths still wants to exit the petrol business despite having inked a 15-year fuel supply deal with Caltex Australia.

Collins Foods, Australia's biggest KFC franchisee, has lifted full-year profit by 16 per cent, buoyed by the addition of new stores to its network, and despite the Western Australian market being an under-performer.

Metcash shares have rallied after the supermarkets wholesaler announced a $125 million share buyback alongside an impairment-driven full-year loss of $149.5 million.

BP Australia has backed out of a deal with Woolworths to buy its petrol business more than six months after the consumer watchdog rejected the deal.

Customers of local whitegoods and home appliance retailers Kambo’s and Liebe + Haus have been told they will need to wait several days before finding out if their credit purchases are still valid after the two jointly-owned businesses were placed into administration on Friday.

Wesfarmers bosses have vowed to focus on delivering returns to shareholders after the company's disastrous foray into the UK hardware market.

Metcash will take a $352 million hit in its full-year results due to weakness in the Western Australian economy and the decision of one of its South Australian supermarket customers not to renew its contract.

Cash Converters International has boosted its coffers with a $39.5 million capital raising, with the proceeds set to strengthen the company’s balance sheet and be used to reduce debt.

Wesfarmers has sold its struggling Homebase business for a nominal sum, with managing director Rob Scott confirming the UK hardware company has cost the conglomerate about $1.3 billion.

Westfield Corporation shareholders have voted in favour of a $33 billion takeover by Paris property giant Unibail-Rodamco, marking the end of an era for the Lowy family.

Myer has warned unseasonably warmer weather could dent its fourth-quarter profit after third-quarter sales dipped 2.7 per cent to $635.3 million.

Shares in Automotive Holdings Group slumped today after the company flagged challenging market conditions and a drop in retail margins due to regulatory changes.

Woolworths has outpaced rival Coles' sales growth for a sixth consecutive quarter.

Two shopping centres in Perth’s north have been included in a $28 million solar power project being undertaken by ASX-listed Vicinity Centres, which is forecasting the creation of about 40 local jobs.

Wesfarmers has announced two leadership changes today, with Officeworks chief executive Mark Ward set to step down at the end of the year, while former New Zealand prime minister Bill English has been appointed to the board of the Perth-based conglomerate.

Wesfarmers has blamed severe winter weather for another dramatic fall in sales at its struggling Bunnings venture in the UK and Ireland.

Coles' food and liquor sales rose in the third quarter, with parent company Wesfarmers citing lower prices and improved service and quality for customers.

Perth-based kitchen appliances firm Thermomix has been ordered to pay $4.6 million in penalties after the Federal Court of Australia found that the company misled customers when its products were found to be dangerously faulty.

Department store sales helped retail spending rebound sharply in February, but economists aren't getting carried away by the surprisingly strong result.

Wesfarmers could find the healthcare sector offers more appeal than retail, as US giant Walmart makes its own moves in that direction.

The market for modest fashion in South-East Asia is attracting attention as a potential export destination for a range of local designers, with dramatic growth expected in the next decade.

Former Bunnings managing director John Gillam has been named as the incoming chairman of building products company CSR while Macmahon Holdings has bolstered its board by recruiting former Alcoa executive Kim Horne.

The growing spectre of online shopping has not deterred one of the country’s largest retailers from investing in its bricks-and-mortar assets, with David Jones opening its fifth Western Australian store today as part of the final chapter of Mandurah Forum’s $350 million redevelopment.

Opinion: Wesfarmers will be a much smaller business after the Coles spin-off is done.

Most of the 63 Myer stores around Australia are likely to be at break-even and the veteran retailer must shrink to survive, a new analyst's report says.

Myer's executive chairman has issued a damning indictment of the department store chain's performance under ex-chief executive Richard Umbers after it slumped to a $476.2 million first-half loss.

A private interstate investor has purchased the Coles complex in Riverton, which includes a supermarket, a First Choice Liquor, a TAB and a 300-bay carpark, for $32 million.

Analysis: The franchising model could become the latest victim of the pressure being heaped on the retail sector.