Sears was at least briefly saved from liquidation Friday by a $4.4 billion bid from a hedge fund, ESL Investments, belonging to the iconic American department store's chair, Eddie Lampert. The last-minute proposal would "offer employment to up to 50,000" of Sears' 68,000 employees, depending on "further actions the company may take between now and closing."
Sears filed for bankruptcy in October, announcing the closure of 142 out of around 700 stores. It has since announced another 120 store closures, 80 of them on Friday.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
How Poland became Europe's military powerThe Explainer Warsaw has made its armed forces a priority as it looks to protect its borders and stay close to the US
-
Quiz of The Week: 15 - 21 FebruaryHave you been paying attention to The Week's news?
-
Tash Aw picks his favourite booksThe Week Recommends From Baldwin to Chekhov, the Malaysian writer shares his top picks
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pausesSpeed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocksSpeed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
-
US port strike averted with tentative labor dealSpeed Read The strike could have shut down major ports from Texas to Maine
-
Biden expected to block Japanese bid for US SteelSpeed Read The president is blocking the $14 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan's Nippon Steel, citing national security concerns
-
Judges block $25B Kroger-Albertsons mergerSpeed Read The proposed merger between the supermarket giants was stalled when judges overseeing two separate cases blocked the deal
-
Rupert Murdoch loses 'Succession' court battleSpeed Read Murdoch wanted to give full control of his empire to son Lachlan, ensuring Fox News' right-wing editorial slant
-
Bitcoin surges above $100k in post-election rallySpeed Read Investors are betting that the incoming Trump administration will embrace crypto
-
Enron mystery: 'sick joke' or serious revival?Speed Read 23 years after its bankruptcy filing, the Texas energy firm has announced its resurrection
