We believe colder weather is helping keep inventories under control. We expect international sales to continue showing strong growth as Wal-Mart pursues geographical expansion through acquisitions.

We're continuing to see retailers cite the weather for either making or breaking their sales numbers. Frankly, I think is an excuse tailored to satisfy Wall Street. Wall Street is a little more forgiving if a major retailer blames weather for disappointing sales.

Kmart's sales for October were on plan despite softer apparel sales due to unseasonably warm weather during the latter half of the month. Sales volumes for the third quarter were near expectations. Categories showing particular strength for the month included home appliances and electronics, do-it-yourself, home decor, cosmetics and fragrances, consumables, stationery and pharmaceuticals.

This is just another example of Wal-Mart's efforts to expand operations in India. The company already sources a significant amount of goods from India. There is plenty of room for expansion internationally, in our view. The company is looking at India as one of many opportunities.

We continue to believe Wal-Mart is well positioned to benefit from international market expansion and reorganization of management structure with increased focus on local markets.

The housing market continues to moderate -- and even January's fantastic weather was not able to increase new-home sales.