Replies to post #80907 on Coffee Sipping Big Board Stocks

[EZ2]

Walmart Announces "Pay with Cash" for Online Purchases


First major retailer to allow customers to pay cash for items online at Walmart.com without a credit, debit or prepaid card.

04/26 06:00 AM

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SAN BRUNO, Calif., April 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Walmart today announced the launch of its "Pay with Cash" offering for online orders at Walmart.com in the United States. Now, customers can shop a broader selection of items online -- hundreds of thousands more items beyond its stores -- at Walmart.com and pay for them with cash at all Walmart stores in the U.S. and also in Neighborhood Markets. Walmart is the first major retailer to offer online purchases without the need for banking services or a credit, debit or prepaid card. "Pay with Cash" will help millions who rely on cash transactions, as well as those who are wary of using credit cards online, to shop Walmart's affordable and expanded online merchandise.

According to the FDIC, one in four U.S. households fall into the unbanked and underbanked categories where they don't have a bank account or credit card or have limited banking options, and often rely on cash as a form of payment for purchases.(1) However, many of them are online, with 81 percent of the unbanked and 63 percent of the underbanked having Internet access.(2)

At Walmart stores, the majority of transactions are paid for in cash or cash equivalent, including debit cards, and approximately 15 percent of transactions are paid in the form of credit. The retailer is seeing more demand for cash as a payment option online, and the new "Pay with Cash" program provides that additional convenience. In a recent survey, Walmart found that more than two thirds of those identified as "underbanked" were likely to use cash as a form of online payment if the option were available. Using "Pay with Cash," customers purchase items at Walmart.com, pay for them in stores within a 48-hour period, and then have the items shipped to their home or local Walmart store.

"Many of our customers shop paycheck to paycheck and are looking for more ways to purchase items online but don't have the means to a credit, debit or prepaid card," said Joel Anderson, president and CEO of Walmart.com. "Our new 'Pay with Cash' offering is designed just for them. It makes it easier for our customers to shop the way they want, where they have access to a broader product selection at Walmart.com coupled with the convenience of payment and shipping as they want."

Pay with Cash: How it Works

Customers go to Walmart.com from any Internet-connected device to select an item and place an order.
During checkout, the customer selects the "Cash" option and their shipping preference. Customer immediately receives an order number on the order confirmation page and an email receipt with their order number. The item is reserved in the system.
The customer has 48-hours to take the printed order form to any cash register of any Walmart store or Neighborhood Market.
Once cash payment is completed in the store and received, shipping then occurs via Site to Store or to their preferred address.
Hundreds of thousands of items at Walmart.com are now available for "Pay with Cash" which includes categories such as baby, health and beauty, toys, home decor, electronics, household appliances, and more, and can also be shipped to a customer's preferred address or their local Walmart store using the Site to Store option. "Pay with Cash" is honored in all U.S. Walmart stores and also in Neighborhood Markets. More information is available online at www.walmart.com/paywithcash.

About Walmart

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (WMT:$57.36,00$-0.41,00-0.71%) serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week at over 10,000 retail units under 69 different banners in 27 countries. With fiscal year 2012 sales of approximately $444 billion, Walmart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://walmartstores.com, and on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart. Online merchandise sales are available at http://www.walmart.com and http://www.samsclub.com.

(1) Source: FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households" FDIC (2009)
(2) Source: "Engaging the Underbanked and Unbanked in the U.S." Javelin Strategy and Research (2011)

SOURCE Walmart

[EZ2]

Throw durable goods on the heap of disappointments

Commentary: U.S. growth is slowing down again


04/26 12:01 AM

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Another data series hit a brick wall in March.

New orders for durable goods unexpectedly tumbled 4.2% in March, the biggest drop since January 2009. Much of the weakness came from a plunge in the very volatile aircraft category, but components such as machinery and computers also fell. And new orders for nondefense-capital goods excluding aircraft slipped 0.8%.

The report joins others including employment, housing and jobless claims that were negative surprises in March. But economists mostly downplayed the durable-goods report, which is one of the most erratic data series covering the U.S. economy.

Economists at Nomura Securities attribute some of the ordering decline for business equipment to the late-2011 end of the 100% bonus-depreciation tax provision, which likely pulled demand into last year. While they acknowledge business spending is slowing, the Nomura economists concluded "For now, however, capital-expenditure plans within the various business surveys suggest reasonably strong investment ahead."

Even with the March fall, new orders and the backlog of unfilled orders are still well above their respective year-earlier levels. Coupled with other reports, the durables data show the manufacturing sector is downshifting but not contracting.


The U.S. economy is in better shape in 2012 than it was in 2011, when a slowdown raised fears about a double dip. Most importantly, progress has been made on two headwinds: households have kept reducing debt levels, and housing has had another year of paring down existing inventories.

Even so, the implications of slower economic growth on unemployment, financial markets and the banking system were very likely a major topic at this week's Federal Reserve policy meeting.

In its policy statement, the Fed trimmed its view of the future ever so slightly by saying "The Committee expects economic growth to remain moderate over coming quarters and then to pick up gradually."

The recovery looks safe enough that Fed officials didn't make any change in policy. But the risks remain high enough that policymakers kept all options on the table.

[EZ2]

Stevia Leaf Production in US Driven by Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) and PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP)

NOTE TO EDITORS: The Following Is an Investment Opinion Being Issued by the OTC REPORT


04/26 08:00 AM

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NEW YORK, NY -- (MARKETWIRE) -- 04/26/12 -- Investment opinion highlighting S & W Seed (SANW:$6.25,00$-0.19,00-2.95%) , Stevia First, Corp. (STVF:$1.10,00$-0.24,00-17.91%) , Coca-Cola (KO:$74.93,00$0.81,001.09%) , and Pepsi . As stevia use begins to take hold in Europe, helping Coca-Cola (KO:$74.93,00$0.81,001.09%) innovate new products like Sprite with stevia, and Pepsi launching SoBe V water with stevia extract, US companies like S & W Seed Company (SANW:$6.25,00$-0.19,00-2.95%) and Stevia First, Corp. (STVF:$1.10,00$-0.24,00-17.91%) are expanding acreage to begin planting stevia in the US.

Both S & W Seed Company (SANW:$6.25,00$-0.19,00-2.95%) and Stevia First Corp. (STVF:$1.10,00$-0.24,00-17.91%) announced this week that they have added acreage dedicated to stevia production. S & W announced 156 acres designated to Stevia production while Stevia First Corp. (STVF:$1.10,00$-0.24,00-17.91%) announced the acquisition of a massive 1,000 acre base for commercial stevia operations. Stevia First's (STVF:$1.10,00$-0.24,00-17.91%) newly leased lands will become the Company's base of operations over the coming months as efforts move from internal studies and seed propagation into planting activity for the 2012 season.

According to the latest report by Zenith International, the worldwide stevia market is estimated to reach nearly $1 billion in market value by 2014. This is up 31 per cent from the $763 million market size estimated in 2010. The market is being driven by major corporations like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo (PEP:$66.67,00$0.16,000.24%) as consumer demand for all-natural zero-calorie products continue to rise in Europe and America. For more information on Stevia production please visit www.steviafirst.com.

This report is for information purposes only, and is neither a solicitation to buy nor an offer to sell securities. Information, opinions and analysis contained herein are based on sources deemed to be reliable and are subject to change without notice. A third party has hired and paid OTC Report one thousand two hundred and ninety five dollars for the publication and circulation of this news release. Accordingly, certain information included herein may be forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. However, no representation, expressed or implied, is made as to the accuracy, completeness or correctness. In light of the above, we accept no liability for any losses arising from an investor's reliance on or use of this report. We do not and have not had any ownership interest in said third party of any kind.

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