Wal-Mart ready for holiday fight

Post date: Nov 22, 2010 8:15:6 PM

Summary of business headlines: Wal-Mart prepares for bruising "Black Friday" fight for shopping dollars; U.S. business economists worried about inflation; Netflix launches streaming-only movie subscription service.

USA-BUSINESS UPDATE - Wal-Mart says it is ready to match competitors discounts in the battle to win "Black Friday". The unofficial start of the holiday shopping season begins on Friday but Wal-Mart says it will be open on Thursday - Thanksgiving Day - with most stores opened around the clock.

Netflix is launching an unlimited streaming-only movie subscription service for $7.99 a month. While at the same time bumping up the monthly fee for its combination service that allows customers to access Netflix's DVD or streaming service. Many of Netflix's rivals are either launching or considering to launch similar movie streaming services.

There's inflation worries in the air for U.S. business economists. A survey compiled by The National Association for Business Economics showed respondents are more worried the Federal Reserve's asset buying program will spark inflation. But few expect inflation to get out of control with the overall economy only expected to keep growing a moderate pace.

Conway Gittens, Reuters