Ottawa, Canada

LESS than two years after opening in Canada, Target has conceded defeat and said it would shutter all its 133 stores, bringing an infamously ill-managed northward foray by the American retail giant to an abrupt end.

About 17,600 people will lose their jobs, Target said, and the Canadian operation would be placed under bankruptcy protection, underscoring the severity of the blunder by one of the largest retailers in the United States.