Millions of Americans mobbed stores in search of bargains offered by businesses hoping to ensure a respectable holiday season.

After beginning as a vehicle for anti-establishment, noncommercial writers, many Web logs have laid out welcome mats for corporate America in the last couple of years.

Just as retailers began to hint that the holiday shopping season might be better than anticipated, General Motors expanded the number of jobs it planned to shed.

One fundamental question that remains unanswered is why a seemingly successful young woman would take her life.

Back home in Albany, the Chamberlain family's upbeat demeanor keeps the news coverage coming after the Thanksgiving Day parade accident.

In February, an administrative law judge will review the union's allegations about Starbucks' practices.

Going out in search of holiday bargains has become as much of a tradition as family gatherings and football games.

Tony Blair warns it will be a disaster if WTO talks in Hong Kong next month fail to reach agreement on fair trade.

Faced with growing numbers of retirees, pension plans are pouring billions into the lightly regulated investment partnerships that once managed money only for the wealthy.

Telephone companies are muscling their way into the turf of cable companies.

Reuters - General Motors' loss-making Saab unit is planning to launch three new models in Europe in an effort to boost volumes and break even, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said on Saturday.

The Commonwealth urges developed nations to show flexibility at key world trade talks next month.

A Qatar firm that is to supply a fifth of Britain's future gas warns high prices could spark a global recession.

Tony Blair says nothing is ruled out on pension reform after the chancellor reportedly voiced doubts on proposals.

US media company CNN is selling its 50% stake in German 24-hour news channel N-TV to partner RTL.

Reuters - Refco , the commodities and futures broker, on Saturday said it has sold its U.S. regulated commodity futures business to a unit of Man Group , the world's largest publicly traded hedge fund company.

In ways less obvious than race and gender, the corporate elite has become less elite and more diverse over the last decade or two, while its counterpart in Washington has become more homogeneous.

In the commotion over hurricanes and wars, one fact has gone largely unnoticed about the President Bush's second term: much of Washington's expert economic team has disappeared.

There is often a huge disconnect between the success and failure of mergers and the enormous fees that banks get for making them happen.

After five years of being dominated by value, growth has begun to reassume market leadership.

Are you trying to find a way to include hedge funds in your own modest portfolio? A fund of hedge funds may seem to be the solution, but it isn't easy.

WHEN Wall Street returns to full operations after the Thanksgiving weekend, traders will have a big batch of economic reports to sink their teeth into. Government data is expected to show strength in job creation, economic output, consumer confidence and orders for durable goods.

And the Retail Gods.

Wall Street can come up with a money-making product faster than you can say

TO describe the two customary ways to cut a swath of gift wrap, Scott Pearson uses a pair of onomatopoeic names:

In the best cases, an exit interview can help improve the workplace for those who remain.

Nance K. Dicciani is the president and chief executive of Specialty Materials Honeywell International in New Jersey.

THE guest rooms at the Shoreham Hotel in Midtown Manhattan come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Some have special features, like back-massaging chairs. The art in each room is original.

Does a financial train wreck lie dead ahead for American consumers and investors?

Inspired by the high-profile success of chefs, more people are seeing restaurants as attractive investments.

More people are overcoming their qualms that no-frills store labels might not match the quality of national brands, and giving them a try.

Scores of complaints have been filed about the tactics used by some insurers to market Medicare's new prescription drug benefit.