For the first thirteen weeks of its reporting period ended November 30, 2008, the Company reported net sales of $17.52 billion, an increase of three percent from $16.98 billion during the similar period last year.

Comparable sales for the four-week and thirteen-week periods ended November 30, 2008, were as follows:

                           4 Weeks   13 Weeks
                           -------   --------
U.S.                         -2%       +3%
International               -15%       -7%
Total Company                -5%       +1%
                           =======   ========

Comparable sales for the four-week and thirteen-week periods, excluding the negative impacts from gasoline deflation and foreign exchange (primarily in CN, UK and Korea), were as follows:

                           4 Weeks   13 Weeks
                           -------   --------
U.S. (w/o gas deflation)     +1%       +3%
International (w/o Fx)       +6%       +7%
Total                        +3%       +4%
                           =======   ========

Additional discussion of these sales results is available on a pre-recorded telephone message. You can access the recording by dialing 1-800-642-1687 (conference ID 47692523). This recorded message will be available today through 5:00 p.m. (PT) on Friday, December 5, 2008.

The Company plans to release its operating results for the first quarter (12 weeks) of its 2009 fiscal year ended November 23, 2008, on December 11, 2008. A conference call to discuss these results is scheduled for 8:00 a.m. (PT) that day and will be available via webcast on www.costco.com (click on Investor Relations and "webcasts").

Costco currently operates 550 warehouses, including 403 in the United States and Puerto Rico, 76 in Canada, 21 in the United Kingdom, six in Korea, five in Taiwan, eight in Japan and 31 in Mexico. The Company also operates Costco Online, an electronic commerce web site, at www.costco.com and at www.costco.ca in Canada.

Certain statements contained in this document and the pre-recorded telephone message constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. For these purposes, forward-looking statements are statements that address activities, events, conditions or developments that the Company expects or anticipates may occur in the future. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual events, results or performance to differ materially from those indicated by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, domestic and international economic conditions including exchange rates, the effects of competition and regulation, uncertainties in the financial markets, consumer and small business spending patterns and debt levels, conditions affecting the acquisition, development, ownership or use of real estate, actions of vendors, rising costs associated with employees (including health care and workers' compensation costs), rising costs associated with the acquisition of merchandise (including the direct and indirect effects of the rising cost of petroleum-based products and fuel and energy costs), geopolitical conditions and other risks identified from time to time in the Company's public statements and reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

CONTACTS:
Costco Wholesale Corporation

Richard Galanti
425/313-8203

Bob Nelson
425/313-8255

Jeff Elliott
425/313-8264

SOURCE: Costco