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The National Retail Federation tells us - surprise - that Mother’s Day spending is going the way of Christmas spending and most other spending this year, namely, down. The group’s annual Mother’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey tells us that ...Read More

BALTIMORE -- A judge in Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon's theft trial told jurors they must stop deliberating and asking questions after he dismisses them for the day. Visiting Judge Dennis Sweeney sent the panel home Thursday afternoon. Members will return Friday. Jurors ...Read More

(Adds comment from National Retail Federation/Merchants Payment Coalition, detail on legislative proposals.) WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--Proposals to cut certain fees that credit-card issuers charge merchants would be challenging to implement, the Government Accountability Office said in a report Thursday. The charges, known as ...Read More

The two new key posts - a President and a High Representative for Foreign Affairs - are created by the Lisbon Treaty. While the treaty has finally been ratified, European Union leaders were still struggling to reach agreement on who ...Read More

CHICAGO (Reuters) - While gift cards remain the most requested holiday item, U.S. shoppers are expected to pull back on buying them this year because of the weak economy, according to a retail survey released on Thursday. Shoppers, on average, will ...Read More

BALTIMORE — Two of the seven charges against Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon are being dropped. A judge dismissed the charges Tuesday during the mayor's theft trial. Prosecutors claim Dixon used gift cards intended for the needy for personal shopping sprees. The judge ...Read More

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The appeal of using credit cards this holiday shopping season will be lower as issuers slash credit limits and a growing number of consumers choose to pay for gifts with cash or debit cards. The number of ...Read More

The retail sector continues to send mixed signals heading into the holiday season. Although the latest figures from the U.S. Commerce Department on retail sales topped analysts' expectations, many of the gains came from a jump in sales of automobile and ...Read More

WASHINGTON -- Just in time for the holiday shopping season, the Federal Reserve moved Monday to implement legislation aimed at limiting fees and expiration dates associated with gift cards. The rules the Fed is proposing would prohibit retailers and issuers, such ...Read More

For today's data dump: the iPhone now accounts for nearly a fifth of new smartphones, and BlackBerrys are on a surprisingly serious tear, passing a 20% in world market share. So, uh, who's losing? Well, for one, Nokia, whose smartphones have ...Read More

BALTIMORE - Prosecutors say receipts prove Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon went on personal shopping excursions with holiday gift cards meant for the needy.Jurors were shown slides of the receipts Thursday. However, defense attorneys argued in opening statements that the cards were ...Read More

BALTIMORE — Store receipts prove Mayor Sheila Dixon used gift cards for the needy during personal shopping sprees, prosecutors said Thursday, though defense attorneys argued they were intended for her use. Prosecutors showed slides of the receipts to jurors in opening ...Read More

Revelations that a third city developer might have donated gift cards to Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon are more likely to cause political damage than legal harm, observers said. Circuit Judge Dennis M. Sweeney will consider arguments today by Dixon's lawyers to ...Read More

Revelations that a third Baltimore developer might have donated gift cards to Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon are more likely to cause political damage than legal harm, observers said. On Thursday, Circuit Court Judge Dennis M. Sweeney will consider arguments by Dixon's ...Read More

CHICAGO -- Dunkin' Donuts said Friday it will launch a new 99-cent menu at 500 Chicago locations on Monday and hand out 20,000 gift cards pre-loaded with $2 each to lure customers. The 99-cent menu includes a sausage, egg and cheese ...Read More

Nov. 3 (Bloomberg) -- The timing of CIT Group Inc.’sbankruptcy filing may have helped U.S. retailers avoid a holidayseason with empty shelves. “Most retailers have dodged a bullet,” said CraigShearman, a spokesman for the National Retail Federation. “Mostof the merchandise for ...Read More

On the heels of its bankruptcy filing, CIT Group Inc.'s future as a commercial lending giant will be determined by the confidence of its creditors and customers. The 101-year-old lender's months-long financial struggles already have been a boon to rivals, which ...Read More

Soupy Sales never met a pie he didn't like and he gave as well as he took. Because he was a kid at heart, Sales could get away with throwing the creamy dessert in the faces of legendary celebrities such as ...Read More

Amy Winehouse. Kate Gosselin. Michael Jackson. Farrah Fawcett. We're definitely keeping it real this Halloween. Costume suppliers predict the year's hot costumes for grown-ups will come from reality television, tabloid celebs and the high-profile deaths of two superstars. The National Retail Federation ...Read More

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi may be pushing for a so-called "public option" in a health care reform bill, but on Thursday she was treated to a "private option" lunch with President Obama. The White House would not disclose the meal served ...Read More

Remember that crazy, dual-screen Barnes & Noble we scooped the hell out of a while back? Well, it's online-official, with Wi-Fi and 3G, person-to-person lending, and expandable memory. Oh, and it ships November 30th. UPDATE: Site's pulled, we've got screens. To ...Read More