Haggen grocery chain is auctioning off 95 stores today as part of bankruptcy proceedings it started in September.  Many of the stores for sale were purchased from Albertsons and Safeway in December 2014. Now Albertsons is looking to buy back 36 of the stores in Washington, Oregon and Arizona. Albertsons was forced to sell the stores last year by the Federal Trade Commission when it merged with Safeway. The Bend stores may be sold next year. (AP)

 

Department store operator Kohl's reported quarterly sales up 1.2% and profits falling 15.5%, helped by strong back-to-school sales, sending its shares up as much as 11% in premarket trading. Kohl's same-store sales rose 1% in the third quarter. U.S. back-to-school sales rose 4.7% in August from a year earlier. Back-to-school season is the second-biggest U.S. shopping period after the holiday season. (Reuters)

 

Just 43 days till Christmas and online shopping is making big moves. For the first time ever, most of Wal-Mart's Black Friday deals will be available online, starting at 3:01 a.m. ET on Thanksgiving Day. In-store sales, won't kick off until 6 p.m. local time. (CNBC)

                                                                                                           

Health care costs paid by the average U.S. Company rose 3.2% in 2015, lowest rate in at least 20 years. Despite this, the average amount workers have to contribute toward their health care is up more than 134% over the past decade and that trend will accelerate. Employees on average contributed $2,490 toward premiums and another $2,208 in out-of-pocket costs, such as copayments, coinsurance and deductibles in 2015.  (USA Today)