Laura Brown
Management
Hello. This is Laura Brown, Senior Vice President of Communications and Investor Relations. With me is Bill Chapman, Senior Director of Investor Relations. The purpose of this podcast is to provide you with additional information regarding Grainger's 2014 second quarter results. Please also reference our 2014 second quarter earnings release issued on July 17th in addition to other information available on our Investor Relations website to supplement this podcast. Before we begin, please remember that certain statements and projections of future results made in the press release and in this podcast constitute forward-looking information. These statements are based on current market conditions and competitive and regulatory expectations and involve risk and uncertainty. Please see our Form 10-K for a discussion of factors that relate to forward-looking statements. Today we reported results for the 2014 second quarter and updated our sales and earnings per share guidance for 2014. While there are several moving parts this quarter, we continue to be pleased with the US segment, which represents 78% of sales and the majority of company earnings. In addition, our three most recent US acquisitions are exceeding our sales and earnings expectations. Furthermore, the investments, we continue to make in growth and infrastructure are helping us gain share with our large more complex customers who appreciate our value proposition. Before we discuss our results, I'd like to highlight a non-cash charge included in the second quarter. Fabory, our business in Europe, recorded a $10 million after-tax or $0.15 per share charge related to the replacement of its existing defined benefit pension plan with a defined contribution plan. As part of the transition, Fabory transferred the plan assets and its existing and future obligations under the defined benefit plan to a third party. The recognition of actuarial losses combined with the write-off of…