The discount chain Big Lots, which filed for bankruptcy protection in September, has reached a deal that will keep hundreds of its stores and distribution centers open.

Big Lots said Friday it will be sold to Gordon Brothers Retail Partners, a firm that specializes in distressed companies. Gordon Brothers will then transfer Big Lots’ stores, distribution centers and other assets to other retailers.

Variety Wholesalers Inc., which owns more than 400 discount stores in the U.S. Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, plans to acquire between 200 and 400 Big Lots stores and operate them under the Big Lots brand. Variety Wholesalers will also acquire up to two distribution centers.

“This sale agreement and transfer present the strongest opportunity to preserve jobs, maximize value for the estate and ensure continuity of the Big Lots brand,” Big Lots President and CEO Bruce Thorn said in a statement. “We are grateful to our associates nationwide for their grit and resilience throughout this process.”

Columbus, Ohio-based Big Lots sells furniture, home decor and other items. When it filed for bankruptcy in September, it said inflation and high interest rates caused consumers to pull back on their purchases of home and seasonal products.

At the time, Big Lots planned to sell its assets and ongoing business operations to private equity firm Nexus Capital Management.

But on Dec. 20, Big Lots said the deal with Nexus didn’t materialize. It then partnered with Gordon Brothers to conduct going-out-of-business sales at its 869 U.S. locations.

Boeing’s shares drop after plane crash

Boeing’s shares fell on Monday, a day after the deadly crash of a 737-800, a widely used model that is a staple of low-cost airlines, at an airport in South Korea.

The passenger plane, operated by Jeju Air, was carrying 181 people, and all but two were killed.

Shares of Boeing dropped sharply at the open of trading in New York, before regaining some ground to trade about 2% lower in the afternoon.

South Korea’s transportation ministry said Monday that it would conduct inspections of the 101 Boeing 737-800 planes used by airlines in the country, including Jeju Air. The inspections were set to start Monday and be completed by Friday.

South Korea’s deputy transport minister, Joo Jong-wan, said at a news briefing that the inspections would look at maintenance records of major systems, including engines and landing gear.

Markets to close in honor of Carter

U.S. stock markets will close Jan. 9, in observance of a national day of mourning for former President Jimmy Carter.

The New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq Inc.’s U.S. equities exchanges and Cboe Global Markets Inc. will shut, the companies said.

CME Group Inc., operator of U.S.-based equity and interest-rates markets, had not yet commented on its plans. The bond market will close at 2 p.m. New York time, per the recommendation of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association.

The closures are part of a long-standing American tradition in which financial institutions halt operations following the death of a president. Carter died Dec. 29 at 100, and was the longest-living US president in history. The most recent national day of mourning came on Dec. 5, 2018, for the funeral of President George H.W. Bush.

Compiled from Associated Press, New York Times and Bloomberg reports.