All Economy
Haggle while Christmas shopping: 5 tipsMost of us will go to a lot of trouble to get a deal, but we're too embarrassed to ask for one. Here are five simple tricks to help you haggle for the best deal 鈥� and how to know when to walk away.聽
Cash-strapped post office: new, faster package service?Cash-strapped post office will test same-day package delivery in San Francisco Dec. 12. If expanded to 10 cities, same-day service could bring in $500 million a year, a drop in the bucket for cash-strapped post office's $15.9 billion loss this year.
Are we headed for another round of downsizing?Business investments may be on the downswing, according to at least one economic indicator.聽
Black Friday: gridlock at the malls brightens prospects for retailersPerfect weather and heavily promoted specials help give a big launch to a holiday season essential to retailers at a time when consumer confidence has been slipping.
Cyber Monday: More firms say its OK to shop at workCyber Monday, the busiest online shopping day of the year, is likely to lure many workers to go online in search of Cyber Monday deals. This year, only a third of companies are blocking access to online shopping sites, according to a recent survey.
Black Friday: Walmart protests liken back to days before unionsWalmart protests on Black Friday by some employees are an attempt to shame the company into public action 鈥� even though the workers are not organized into a labor union. Extent of Walmart protests still unclear.
Why Black Friday 2012 is giving shoppers and stores an extra giftBlack Friday falls falls early in the calendar this year, which means retailers have more opportunity to make sales and shoppers have more time to do last-minute shopping.
Black Friday liveblog: Online deals or brick-and-mortar sales?Sales tax may be hurting Amazon's bottom line, but overseas, online sales have been booming on similar shopping holidays.- Black Friday: Boutiques open at midnight? How 鈥榣ittle guys鈥� try to compete.Many small business owners are looking for their piece of the Black Friday retail pie. But experts say trying to match the big stores may not be the best policy, and warn shoppers to do their homework, too.
Are you spending too much on monthly services?A monthly bill means that every single month, like clockwork, you鈥檙e going to have to spend some of your hard-earned dough, Hamm writes.聽
Black Friday: Will the 'fiscal cliff' darken the mood in the malls?Economists view Black Friday as a litmus test for consumer confidence, which is showing signs of weakening. Whether Washington can come to terms to avert the fiscal cliff 鈥� and tax hikes 鈥� is a wild card.
NHTSA executive joins Google to build driverless carsIf you were looking to progress autonomous cars from the experimental stage to the mainstream implementation stage,聽the deputy director of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration聽is someone you鈥檇 want on your team, Ernst writes.
Anchors resign on air, blaming managementAnchors resign on air at end of their newscast Tuesday in Bangor, Maine. Anchors not specific about why they resign on air, later citing frustration with management (which once prohibited staff from reporting on global warming).
Credit card debt rises to nearly $5,000 per borrowerBorrowing on credit cards is up 4.9 percent from a year ago, TransUnion reports.
An electric vehicle made of wicker?An entrepreneur wants to bring back wicker-bodied 'electriquettes' designed to parade around the Panama-California Exposition grounds in San Diego between 1915 and 1916.
Gym memberships costing you a fortune? Cancel them.If you don鈥檛 use a membership or a subscription service聽very聽frequently, it鈥檚 not going to be worth it, Hamm writes.
Thanksgiving dinner: 10 ways to saveThanksgiving dinner isn't cheap, but it doesn't have to break the bank. Here are ten tips to save on the big Thanksgiving meal.聽
Amazon: great Black Friday deals, but what about sales tax?Eight states now charge sales taxes on online transactions, including Amazon's. But the taxes won't slow down Amazon's ability to match prices of competitors.
Black Friday walkout: why Wal-Mart is focus of labor's struggleWal-Mart's low-cost recipe for success is under attack from the threatened Black Friday walkout as workers protest low wages and benefit cuts. The retailer is fighting back, accusing organized labor of making trouble.
EPA rejects suspension of corn-based ethanol mandateEPA denied a request Friday to suspend parts of the 2007 Renewable Fuel Standard, which came from concerns that the feed corn essential to those states' agricultural businesses would be diverted to supply ethanol refineries.
