Digital shift, store closings and dollar pressure Office Depot 2Q sales, but a narrower loss

Lower expenses resulted in a smaller loss for Office Depot in the second quarter, but sales slid 10 percent on a strong dollar, and because of store closures, as the company prepares to merge with one-time rival Staples.

Sales have also been on a downward slide because offices and homes are becoming more digital, requiring fewer traditional office supplies that just a few years ago supported several major office supply chains. That kicked off a rapid consolidation in which Office Depot tied up with OfficeMax, only to be acquired by Staples.

Office Depot still anticipates the approximately $6 billion deal closing by the end of the year.

For the period ended June 27, Office Depot Inc. lost $58 million, or 11 cents per share. A year earlier the office supply company lost $190 million, or 36 cents per share.

Removing certain items, earnings were 6 cents per share. This met the expectations of analysts polled by FactSet.

Selling, general and administrative expenses fell to $741 million from $863 million. Asset impairments dropped to $4 million from $22 million.

Revenue for the Boca Raton, Florida, company declined to $3.44 billion from $3.84 billion. This was slightly below the $3.48 billion that Wall Street was looking for.