NATION

NATION
IBM to move thousands of software jobs overseas
ARMONK, N.Y. -- IBM Corp. plans to move up to several thousand skilled software jobs from the United States to India, China and other countries, which could amount to one of the biggest such actions yet in the technology industry.
IBM documents obtained by The Wall Street Journal said about 4,700 programming jobs could be shifted overseas to save costs, a growing high-tech industry trend known as "offshoring."
More than 900 people are already scheduled to be told of the move in the first half of 2004, while another 3,700 jobs have been identified as having the "potential to move offshore," the Journal said.
Wal-Mart, other retailers report sales are lower
NEW YORK -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, tempered its holiday outlook Monday, saying that sales growth at stores open at least a year is now tracking at the low end of its 3 percent to 5 percent range.
Target Corp. and Sears, Roebuck and Co., said sales were below forecasts.
Despite a recovering economy, the nation's retailers appear to be at the same place they were a year ago, with shoppers again delaying holiday buying until the final stretch in hopes of snagging the deepest discounts.
Associated Press