Sears Canada posts bigger quarterly loss

Department store operator Sears Canada Inc reported a bigger third-quarter loss as its same-store sales were hit by a lack of attractive financing options due to the termination of a key credit card agreement.

Sears terminated its credit card marketing and servicing agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank in November last year.

The company said Billy Wong, its interim chief financial officer since July, would take over the CFO role on a permanent basis.

The company's net loss widened to C$120 million ($91.09 million), or C$1.18 per share, in the quarter ended Oct. 29 from C$53.2 million, or 52 Canadian cents per share, a year earlier.

Sears Canada's same-store sales fell 7.1 percent in the quarter, while overall revenue tumbled 21 percent to C$625.2 million. ($1 = 1.3174 Canadian dollars)