“In a difficult retail environment, we were pleased with our comparable store sales during this period,” said Eduardo Castro-Wright, Wal-Mart Stores U.S. president and chief executive officer. “Wal-Mart’s food performance was very strong, which helped drive traffic to other areas of the stores.

“Our price leadership position was clear very early in the holiday season, and customers responded throughout the period to our pricing and merchandise offerings, which were supported by well-integrated advertising and in-store communications,” he said. “Customers were also pleased with the improvements they saw through our faster, friendlier check-outs, as well as their overall in-store experiences. Our stores were well-merchandised and did a good job managing inventory throughout the Christmas season.”