Costco Wholesale Corporation Reports October Sales Results

ISSAQUAH, WA--(Marketwire - Nov 3, 2011) - Costco Wholesale Corporation ("Costco" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: COST) today reported net sales of $7.01 billion for the month of October, the four weeks ended October 30, 2011, an increase of 11 percent from $6.30 billion during the similar four-week period last year.

For the first nine weeks of its reporting period ended October 30, 2011, the Company reported net sales of $15.62 billion, an increase of 13 percent from $13.81 billion during the similar period last year.

Comparable sales for the four-week and nine-week periods ended October 30, 2011:

Inflation in gasoline prices had a positive impact on comparable sales; while foreign currencies had a slightly negative impact for the four-week period, a slightly positive impact for the nine-week period. Excluding these effects, comparable sales for the four-week and nine-week periods were as follows:

Additional discussion of these sales results is available in a pre-recorded telephone message. You can access the recording by dialing 1-800-642-1687 (conference ID 25104122). This message will be available today through 5:00 p.m. (PT) on Friday, November 4, 2011.

Costco currently operates 595 warehouses, including 432 in the United States and Puerto Rico, 82 in Canada, 32 in Mexico, 22 in the United Kingdom, nine in Japan, eight in Taiwan, seven in Korea and three in Australia. The Company also operates Costco Online, an electronic commerce web site, at www.costco.com and at www.costco.ca in Canada. The Company plans to open up to three additional warehouses prior to the end of calendar year 2011.

Certain statements contained in this document and the pre-recorded telephone message constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. For these purposes, forward-looking statements are statements that address activities, events, conditions or developments that the Company expects or anticipates may occur in the future. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual events, results or performance to differ materially from those indicated by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, domestic and international economic conditions, including exchange rates, the effects of competition and regulation, uncertainties in the financial markets, consumer and small business spending patterns and debt levels, conditions affecting the acquisition, development, ownership or use of real estate, actions of vendors, rising costs associated with employees (including health care costs), energy, and certain commodities, geopolitical conditions and other risks identified from time to time in the Company's public statements and reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.