The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday, Feb. 16, edition that Canadian Tire posted a significant decrease in sales and profit for the fourth quarter, attributing it to mild winter weather, high interest rates, and consumers cutting back on non-essential purchases. The Globe's Susan Krashinsky Robertson writes that during a conference call held on Thursday, Canadian Tire chief executive officer Greg Hicks revealed that the company is currently experiencing a decline in store traffic and higher writeoffs in its credit-card portfolio. Mr. Hicks referred to the situation as "structural uncertainty," indicating that the company is operating through a challenging period. The company was faced with a difficult economic situation which resulted in a reduction of its spending targets. Canadian Tire had already slowed down its pace of investments, which had an impact on the implementation of a growth plan launched two years ago. This plan involved upgrading stores, improving supply chain, and enhancing digital operations. Canadian Tire reported a 67.6-per-cent decline in net income in the quarter. Net income attributable to shareholders fell to $172.5-million, compared with $531.9-million in the same period the prior year.