• MSNBC/Forbes, Monday, January 21, 2008 10:45 AM

A new report finds that Wal-Mart benefits rather than harms the American economy. The study, which was just released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, shows that between 1985 and 2003, personal income, overall employment and retail employment grew faster in counties with a Wal-Mart than in those without one.

While it is conventional wisdom that Wal-Mart wipes out local jobs and depresses wages, the report says the opposite is true. "Firm growth, employment and total earnings were somewhat stronger in Wal-Mart counties," it says. Still, according to a Pew study cited by the report, 24% of Americans think the company is bad for the economy, and 31% had an unfavorable view of it.

Wal-Mart accounts for almost 6% of retail and food sales in the U.S.; 7.5% if you include car sales, according to the report. Five out of six Americans shopped at the stores in 2005. The Minneapolis Fed doesn't claim that Wal-Mart is a boon to every local economy it touches, just that its advantages outweigh its disadvantages.

Read the whole story at MSNBC/Forbes »