Hasbro Inc is out of FurReal Friends cats, and some shoppers may be out of luck as many toy retailers keep inventory lean to avoid a blue Christmas.
With more than two weeks still to go until Christmas, the second-largest US toymaker is shipping some FurReal Friends kittens it planned to sell next year to stores to quench demand, said spokesman Wayne Charness. "We have no more left to sell."
FurReal Friends cats isn't the only toy that may be in short supply. Some retailers have been ordering less this year to keep inventory low on concern job losses and stock-market declines may dampen consumer spending this holiday season, analysts said.
Betting conservatively on inventory may mean lost sales when a toy unexpectedly catches the public's fancy.
"There's going to be a lot of missed opportunities," said Jim Silver, publisher of Toy Wishes magazine. "This year there's going to be a lot more of things running out than we've had in the past three or four years." As of Friday, Toys 'R' Us Inc, the No. 2 US toyseller, was out of Mattel Inc's Chicken Dance Elmo and Kasey the Kinderbot in addition to Hasbro's FurReal Friends cats, which purrs and meows when stroked, according to the company's Web site.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. had no more Spin Master Toys' Slushee Makers, the world's biggest toyseller said on its Web site. KB Toys sold out of Mattel's Barbie as Rapunzel dolls and some of Upper Deck Entertainment's Yu-Gi-Oh trading card games, according to its Internet site.
Sharon Roff, went to the KB store in Lawrence Township, New Jersey, yesterday for the Yu-Gi-Oh trading card game tin, that KB had advertised in a flier, and two other specific Yu-Gi-Oh game cards for her seven-year old son.
"This is my third store today," said Roff, from Kendall Park, New Jersey. "I couldn't even find them online. My friend's daughter is looking for those FurReal Friends. She even asked people in South Carolina looking for her."
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
SHOT IN THE ARM: The new system can be integrated with Avenger and Stinger missiles to bolster regional air defense capabilities, a defense ministry report said Domestically developed Land Sword II (陸射劍二) missiles were successfully launched and hit target drones during a live-fire exercise at the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County yesterday. The missiles, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), were originally scheduled to launch on Tuesday last week, after the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday long weekend, but were postponed to yesterday due to weather conditions. Local residents and military enthusiasts gathered outside the base to watch the missile tests, with the first one launching at 9:10am. The Land Sword II system, which is derived from the Sky Sword II (天劍二) series, was turned