Also. . .

* J.C. Penney Co. cut more than 2,500 jobs, or about 1% of its work force, as it shuttered 45 department stores and 279 Eckerd drugstores and trimmed other staff. The retailer, which announced the store closings in February, disclosed the cuts in a regulatory filing. An additional nine department stores and nine drugstores are set for closure by the end of the year.

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