NC-based grocery chain cutting new store openings

CHARLOTTE — A North Carolina-based grocery chain says the weak economy is forcing it to cut the number of new stores it had planned this year.

The Charlotte Observer reported Friday that Harris Teeter’s parent firm said it will open 16 new stores instead of 19 in its eight-state region. The company’s Web site said it operates 176 retail stores.

The company said last summer it planned to spend about $245 million this year in new stores and remodeling. But Harris Teeter’s parent Ruddick Corp. said it will spend $212 million on stores.

The company also is building a $100 million distribution center in Fredericksburg, Va.

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