JC Penney predicts improved sales outlook JC Penney, the troubled department store, expects its sales to continue improving in the end-of-year shopping season after posting a long-awaited sales increase in October. The retailer reported last week that its October sales rose 0.9 per cent from a year ago, the first increase since December 2011, just before the retailer was plunged into crisis by a reform plan that it is reversing. Mike Ullman, chief executive, said: "Our strategies to reconnect with customers are beginning to take hold, and this became increasingly clear as the quarter progressed." He added that the company was "encouraged by the early weeks of November," but he noted that the retail environment overall was "still sluggish." The positive outlook pushed JC Penney shares up 7.8 per cent to $9.39 on Wednesday morning, although after two years of turmoil they remain close to their lowest level since the 1980s. As investors concerned about JC Penney's survival focused on its liquidity, the company said it had access to cash and cash equivalents of $1.2bn. The forecast came as JC Penney released details of profitability for the quarter to November 2, during which it had already disclosed that its like-for-like sales for all three months fell 3.8 per cent from a year ago. The retailer posted another big loss - of $489m - as its sales remain too low to cover its cost base.