Kroger lowers profit forecast after weak Q3

Grocery giant The Kroger Co., Cincinnati, has scaled back its profit forecasts for 2003 after reporting a 6.6-percent drop in third-quarter profits. The company, which posted a profit of $263 million from $282 million in the year-ago period, said it expects 2003 earnings to be flat compared with 2002, and sales from existing stores to be lower than previously estimated. "The combination of a weak economy, rising unemployment, product cost deflation and continued aggressive competition has created a difficult operating environment," says Joseph Pichler, Kroger's chairman and CEO. "It is not clear when consumer confidence will improve."