By Sarah Coffey

By Sarah Coffey

Shares of department stores were mixed Friday after the House voted to approve the government's $700 billion financial rescue plan.

Department store operator Kohl's Corp. said Wednesday it plans to open 47 stores in the balance of the year, which will meet environmental standards and bring its total number of stores to 1,000.

Shares of department stores plummeted Monday along with the broader financial markets after the House defeated a plan to bail out the financial services industry.

Shares of department stores fell Monday along with the broader market amid investors' fears that the ongoing credit crisis will dampen economies globally.

Nearly six times as many U.S. shoppers say they will cut back on gift-buying this holiday season than those who plan to spend more, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll released Wednesday.

Early reports from several retailers including J.C. Penney Co. and Kohl's Corp. confirmed on Wednesday what Wall Street had already expected: a weak start to the back-to-school shopping season.

Calling all shoppers: If the presidential elections were held today, for whom would you vote? It turns out your shopping habits could be an indicator of that decision, according to a recent survey.

Retailers are typically obsessed with what to put under their roofs, not on them. Yet the nation’s biggest store chains are coming to see their immense, flat roofs as an untapped resource.

Early July sales results from retailers have been disappointing, with many falling short of analyst estimates. It also appears that the benefit from tax rebate checks is beginning to wane.

Retailers, including Wal-Mart Stores, are posting solid same-store sales growth in June, as expected, as seasonal weather and tax rebate checks helped get consumers to the store.

U.S. retailers, led by the discounters, are expected to post slightly better June same- store sales this week, thanks to seasonal weather and rebate checks that have made their way to cash registers, mostly for basic items such as gasoline and food.

Retailer Macy's reported a quarterly loss Wednesday as a difficult retail environment hurt sales and it incurred costs from a restructuring.

After slashing inventory and cutting expenses, the retail industry is still bracing for the largest overall quarterly profit decline in at least nine years when merchants report their first-quarter earnings this week.