Office Depot Inc reported a bigger-than-expected quarterly loss on Tuesday as the recession weighed on sales at the No. 2 U.S. office supplies retailer, and its shares fell 13 percent.

The recession has hit sales of office supplies hard as consumers and small businesses buy fewer big-ticket items like furniture and computers.

The second-quarter net loss at the Boca Raton, Florida-based company widened to $82 million, or 31 cents a share, from $2 million, or 1 cent a share, a year earlier.

Excluding charges, it reported a loss of 22 cents a share, while analysts, on average, expected a loss of 12 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.

Sales fell 22 percent to $2.8 billion.

Unlike in the first quarter, the sales volume decline outpaced the benefits from cost-cuts.

The company, whose rivals include OfficeMax Inc and industry leader Staples Inc , has closed stores, laid off workers, shuttered distribution centers and trimmed capital spending.

In the latest quarter, operating expenses, adjusted for charges, fell by $143 million.

Office Depot, which closed five stores, opened three and relocated one store in the quarter, said sales at U.S. and Canadian stores open at least a year fell 18 percent.

It also reduced promotions at its North American stores, which also hurt sales, it said.

Last month, Office Depot received a $350 million investment from London-based private equity firm BC Partners, relieving some liquidity concerns. It said it continues to pursue other internal sources of liquidity.

Office Depot, which took pretax charges of about $35 million in the quarter, sees between $85 million and $115 million in additional charges for the rest of 2009.

Its stock fell 70 cents to $4.65 in trading before the opening bell.

(Reporting by Dhanya Skariachan; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Jeffrey Benkoe)

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