Article: Recession's effects on Arkansas' public companies prove mixed.(Overview)

THE RECESSION THAT BEGAN in the last quarter of 2007 began to affect Arkansas publicly traded companies in 2008, though other factors played their part in both earnings and losses.

The economic downturn has proven beneficial to Wal-Mart Stores Inc., for example, as wallet-watching shoppers headed to the stores known for their everyday low prices. Income for the world's largest retailer rose to $13.4 billion compared with $12.7 billion during its previous fiscal year.

And a spike in oil and gasoline prices last summer helped Murphy Oil Corp. more than double its earnings, to $1.7 billion compared with $766 million in 2007.

The state's ...

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