Office Depot to close 400 stores

Office Depot will close about 150 U.S. stores this year and more than 400 of its 1,900 stores in total over the next two years. The office supply retailer is consolidating operations after purchasing Office Max in November, and it expects to increase profits by 2015 as a result of the closings. In March, rival Staples announced it would also close about 225 U.S. and Canadian stores. The chains are competing with online retailers and mass merchants and may begin to diversify their product offerings.