Friday’s business headlines

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – Here’s a look at Friday’s business headlines.

Groceries

Grocery shoppers are cutting back on spending, data show, a sign that Americans are hurting for cash as the federal unemployment stimulus remains on hold for most recipients.

The merging shift in food spending comes after the $600 in weekly additional unemployment checks expired in July. It has also prompted grocery stores to bring back something customers haven’t seen much of during the pandemic: discounts.

Costco

The free sample kiosks at Costco are reportedly back but looking at little different.

The big-box retailer brought back its beloved samples in June after temporarily suspending them due to health and safety concerns amid the coronavirus, however, the free food samples now appear to be packaged instead of made-to-taste for shoppers.

Fox Business reports the free sample cart also urges customers to socially distance while shopping and features the price information for the products featured in the sample. It also notifies customers of potential food allergy concerns.

Malls

Twenty-five percent of U.S. malls are expected to shut down within five years.

Coresight research says the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated a demise that was already underway.

According to data pulled by Moody’s Analytics Reis, apartment development in the U.S. is expected to be down 15.6% in a post-COVID-19 world, office development is set to drop 10% it said, while retail falls 15.7%.

TikTok

Walmart has joined Mircosoft’s pursuit of TikTok.

Microsoft’s bid seen a front-runner for a potential deal that could be announced within a week: TikTok is asking $30 billion for its U.S. operations but the Wall Street Journal says buyers are balking at that price.

About one third of TikTok’s 49 million daily users are in the U.S. are reportedly 14 years old or younger and Walmart sess them as future shoppers that it can market to digitally.