Popular retailer Target Corp. is the latest company to join in recent layoffs and closings.

The chain announced, Tuesday, plans to cut about 600 jobs at its headquarters, all while leaving another 400 vacant positions unfilled. A Little Rock, Ark., distribution center currently employing 500 workers will also be closed later this year.

"We are clearly operating in an unprecedented economic environment that requires us to make some extremely difficult decisions," Gregg Steinhafel, Target's president and CEO, said in a statement.

Lower sales had already forced Target to withhold raises to senior management, tighten credit granting and reduce plans for store expansion. The company's store sales fell 4.1 percent last month, following a decline of 10.4 percent in November.

Meanwhile, electronic retailer, Best Buy, also announced involuntary layoffs at its headquarters.

The job cuts come just one day after massive layoffs by Home Depot, Caterpillar, General Motors and Sprint-Nextel.

To date, the national unemployment rate is at a 16-year high.

Sources: Associated Press, Reuters, Biz Journals