Layoffs, and Closings and Cuts...Oh My

Can it really get any worse?

Turns out that for Circuit City that answer is an emphatic (and repeated) "yes."

This week the struggling CE retailer took another hit after The Wall Street Journal (fly-by-night media organization that it is) published a report that the company was considering a plan to close more than 150 of its stores and lay off thousands of employees in an effort to stave off bankruptcy. Not exactly a good sign heading into the busy holiday shopping season.

Naturally, Circuit City refused to comment on the news, but spokesman Bill Cimino did tell the Journal that nothing is off the table at this point.

"The management team, board of directors and its strategic finance advisors are conducting a comprehensive review of all aspects of our business to determine the best methods of accelerating our turnaround," he told the newspaper.

But there's more to this story than just Circuit City. While the retailer's stock value has plunged 91 percent in the last year, sector leading Best Buy's is down 53 percent as well, leading many to view Circuit's woes as a symptom of wider problems in the consumer electronic space. In this view, if the company can survive this rough spot, maybe it can claw its way back to profitability in the next couple of years.

Stranger things have happened.