Takin’ off the Ritz: Ritz Camera Centers, which has been struggling to reorganize and save roughly 400 of its more than 800 stores, says it no longer has enough money to purchase fall inventory and continue operations, the Washington Business Journal reports. Ritz recently closed its two Baton Rouge locations, in the Mall of Louisiana and Hammond Aire Plaza. The Maryland-based company says it now expects to auction off its remaining locations by the end of the month.
Ninth consecutive drop: Wholesale inventories fell for a ninth consecutive month in May as businesses struggle to trim stockpiles amid the longest recession since World War II. The Commerce Department says inventories dipped 0.8% in May, slightly smaller than the 1% decline economists had expected. Sales at the wholesale level posted a 0.2% rise in May, better than the expected flat reading. It was the best showing for sales since a similar rise in February.
