Thursday May 3, 2007 FEATURES Convenience, re-conceived The news this week that entrepreneur Bill Knight will offer franchising opportunities based on his NexStore MarketPlace is yet another example of a retailer aiming to stand out in the convenience channel by offering more variety and better quality, particularly in foodservice. Knight, who opened NexStore MarketPlace in Boca Raton, Fla., a few years ago, is going to franchise the format under the name NexStore Express, according to an April 27 article in the Boca Raton News. (Full Story) API aims to put industry earnings into perspective The American Petroleum Institute has a Web site, energytomorrow.org, that is featuring a presentation titled, "America's Oil and Natural Gas Industry: Putting earnings into perspective." "It is a fairly new Web site," Bill Bush of API's media relations and communications office told NPN MarketPulse this week. (Full Story) Sign up for a FREE subscription to NPN, the magazine that has been reporting news and trends in the petroleum and convenience store industry since 1909. SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT Get The Data That Drives The Petroleum & Convenience Industry Today! To order your print copy or CD version of the 2006 NPN MarketFacts edition, please click here NEWS ITEMS BP chief quits over revelations about sex life BP chief John Browne resigned abruptly May 1 after losing a court battle with a London tabloid over disclosure of his sexual relationship with a younger man, according to an article by Alan Cowell in The New York Times. (Full Story) Tesoro Corporation completes USA Petroleum acquisition Tesoro Corporation announced May 1 that it has completed the purchase of the USA Gasoline brand and 138 operating stations from USA Petroleum Corporation. (Full Story) PCATS announces site, date of 2008 Winter Meetings The Petroleum Convenience Alliance for Technology Standards (PCATS) announced that it will hold its 2008 Winter Meetings the week of January 21 at the Florida Hotel and Conference Center in Orlando, Florida. (Full Story) Tesco leases 16,300 square feet in Orange, California Tesco Stores West Inc. leased 16,332 square feet of retail space at Galleria L'Orange, a 55,000-square-foot shopping center at 130 S. Main St. in Orange, Calif., according to a May 1 report by Emily Chiu on the CoStar Realty Information Web site. (Full Story) PAI ATM buys NetBank ATM and merchant servicing operations NetBank Inc. has sold its ATM and merchant servicing operations to Payment Alliance International Inc. unit PAI ATM Services LLC for $18 million, according to a May 1 article in the Atlanta Business Chronicle. (Full Story) KFC completes rollout of zero grams trans fat cooking oil KFC announced April 30 that its restaurants nationwide are now serving its fried chicken with zero grams of trans fat per serving. (Full Story) Sunday suds may flow earlier in Melbourne, Florida Restrictions on Sabbath Day booze sales in Melbourne, Fla., soon may ease, according to a May 1 article by Rick Neale in Florida Today. (Full Story) Merchants Coalition welcomes House scrutiny of interchange fees The Merchants Payments Coalition (MPC) said April 27 that it welcomed comments by Rep. Melvin Watt (D-N.C.) criticizing the hidden credit card "interchange" fee that credit card companies charge merchants whenever a customer makes a purchase using a credit or debit card. (Full Story) In Oregon: cigarette tax hike fails in House vote A proposed cigarette tax increase to pay for children's health insurance failed April 26 as the Oregon House got tied up in parliamentary maneuvers, according to an article by Peter Wong in the Statesman Journal. (Full Story) WSCO Petroleum to use high-speed network from New Edge WSCO Petroleum Inc., an independent convenience store and petroleum operator in Oregon and Washington intends to use technology for transforming how it does business to boost profits and improve speed and quality of service for its customers, according to an announcement April 30 by New Edge Networks. (Full Story) NexStore creator plans to franchise his upscale convenience store format Bill Knight, an entrepreneur who opened NexStore in Boca Raton, Fla., a few years ago, is going to franchise the format under the name NexStore Express, according to an April 27 article by Dale M. King in the Boca Raton News. (Full Story) Gilbarco expands Retail Solutions sales team Gilbarco Inc. announced April 27 that it is expanding its sales team to provide more comprehensive consultative service to customers. (Full Story) Senator seeks big tax hike on Big Oil's profits Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) called for a new tax on oil company profits, according to an April 27 article by Jerome L. Sherman in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. (Full Story) Valero Energy announces $6 billion share repurchase authorization Valero Energy Corporation on April 26 announced that its board of directors has expanded its stock repurchase authorization from the $2 billion authorization announced last October to $6 billion. (Full Story) Valero Energy Corporation reports first quarter earnings Valero Energy Corporation on April 26 reported first quarter 2007 net income of $1.1 billion, or $1.86 per share, which compares to $849 million, or $1.32 per share, in the first quarter of 2006. (Full Story) FTC releases reports on cigarettes and smokeless tobacco The number of cigarettes sold or given away, as well as the amount spent on advertising and promotion by the five largest cigarette companies in the United States, decreased in 2004 and 2005, according to a report released April 26 by the Federal Trade Commission. (Full Story) Cumberland Farms extends deployment of Retalix Solutions Retalix, a provider of enterprise-wide software solutions for food retailers and distributors, announced April 26 that Cumberland Farms Inc. has completed implementation of Retalix HQConvenience (HQC) and the Retalix StorePoint Office systems across all 600 corporate stores. (Full Story) Veeder-Root ORVR Hanging Hardware System certified in Texas Veeder-Root's On-Board Refueling Vapor Recovery (ORVR) Hanging Hardware System has obtained certification from the state of Texas for use with both Gilbarco VaporVac and Dresser Wayne WayneVac system dispensers, Kevin Hughes, Global Product Manager, Air Quality Protection, for Veeder-Root, announced April 20. (Full Story) ExxonMobil announces first quarter 2007 results "ExxonMobil's first quarter net income was $9,280 million, up 10% from the first quarter of 2006," Chairman Rex W. Tillerson said in a statement April 26. (Full Story) The Pantry announces second quarter financial results The Pantry, Inc., an independently operated convenience store chain in the southeastern U.S., on April 26 announced financial results for its second fiscal quarter ended March 29, 2007. (Full Story) EIA: gasoline and diesel prices both decrease Gasoline saw a slight decrease for the week of April 23, falling 0.7 cent to 286.9 cents per gallon, according to the April 25 edition of "This Week in Petroleum," published by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). (Full Story) Tesco aims for 100 U.S. stores by February Tesco Plc said on April 25 that it hopes to have 100 "Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Markets" in the United States by February of 2008, according to an article by Tim Gaynor of Reuters. (Full Story) Valero partners with Transaction Network Services Transaction Network Services, Inc., Reston, Va., a provider of business-critical network and data communications services for transaction-oriented applications, announced April 25 that it has been selected by Valero Energy Corporation to provide broadband-based Internet Protocol (IP) networks and transaction solutions for its wholesale branded Valero locations. (Full Story) Aussie 'Smart Lid' turns red to signal coffee is hot Plastic coffee lids for take-out hot drinks, which turn bright red, are now available in the U.S., Smart Lid Systems, Sydney, Australia, announced April 25. The company said it had signed an international license agreement. (Full Story) Outsite Networks launches thevendorlink.com Web site Outsite Networks, Inc. Norfolk, Va., on April 24 announced the launch of a new web site designed to link vendors and advertisers to retailers that utilize Outsite Networks' In-Touch loyalty marketing system. (Full Story) PRODUCT OF THE WEEK DTN launches ProphetX Biodiesel Edition™ DTN recently introduced DTN ProphetX Biodiesel Edition™, the only complete trading platform providing biodiesel producers and investors with agricultural and energy market intelligence, pricing information, analytical commentary and risk management tools to stay abreast of the markets, maximize profitability and minimize commodity price risk. DTN ProphetX Biodiesel Edition provides financial modeling calculators and price forecasting tools to allow users to dynamically evaluate the impact on their business in a range of market environments. This edition is a must for anyone in the emerging biodiesel markets to ensure future profitability and support sound investment decisions. DTN ProphetX Biodiesel Edition's risk management tools create user-specific "what if" scenarios to determine gross margin, net profit, break-even prices, exposed production risks and optimal hedging strategies over a 12 month period. The DTN Biodiesel Crush tools can even assist users in determining the most economical and profitable multi-feedstock selections and ratios for operations and local market conditions. DTN www.dtn.com CALENDAR OF EVENTS NYACS Trade Show and Convention The Oncenter Syracuse, N.Y. May 15-16 (518) 432-1400 www.nyacs.org Focus on Finance hosted by Meridian Associates, Inc. Renaissance Worthington Hotel Fort Worth, Texas May 16-18 (800) 728-9005 www.askmeridian.com   Winning Fuel Buying Strategies Hyatt Harborside Hotel Boston May 16-18 (866) 620-5940 opisnet.com/fuelbuying OMEGA WV Trade Show Stonewall Resort Roanoke, WV May 21-23 (304) 343-5500 www.omegawv.com   Vermont Fuel Dealers Association Spring 2007 Conference Top Notch Resort & Spa Stowe, Vt. May 23-24 (802) 485-7999 www.vermontfuel.com NACS Marketing Conference Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center Dallas June 5-7 (703) 684-3600 www.nacsonline.com   For a complete list of industry events, go to NPN's calendar web page.  Published By NPN Group |  © 2007 NPN Group | All Rights Reserved For more information on NPN MarketPulse, contact: Gary Bevers, group publisher M2MEDIA360 Retail Distribution Group Ph: 832-444-7675 Fax: 800-430-3446 Keith Reid, editor-in-chief M2MEDIA360 NPN Group Ph: 630-739-0280 Fax: 630-739-0321 This newsletter is protected by United States copyright and other intellectual property laws and may not be reproduced, rewritten, distributed, re-disseminated, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast, directly or indirectly, in any medium without the prior written permission of M2MEDIA360.

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