Costco Reports 10% Comp Store Sales Gain for October

Costco Wholesale Corporation reported net sales of $4.26 billion for the four weeks ended October 30, 2005, an increase of 12% from $3.79 billion in the same four-week period of the prior fiscal year.

For the first 9-weeks of its fiscal year ended October 30, 2005, the Company reported net sales of $9.40 billion, an increase of 13 percent from $8.32 billion during the similar 9-week period of the prior fiscal year.

Comparable sales for the 4-week and 9-week periods ended October 30, 2005, were as follows:

                            4 Weeks        9 Weeks
                          ------------  --------------
        US                    10%            10%
        International          9%            11%

        Total Company         10%            10%
                          ============  ==============

The U.S. figure includes the benefit from significant recent gasoline price inflation, with the average sales price per gallon of gasoline up 30% year-over-year in the month of October. Excluding gasoline price inflation, U.S. comparable sales in October would have been 8%.