Sale shoppers ‘set to spend £3bn’

26 December 2012 Last updated at 00:11 ETBritish shoppers are expected to spend almost £3bn in the Boxing Day sales, experts have predicted.Millions of bargain-hunters are set to descend on High Streets and shopping centres across the UK.Shops will be cutting prices and opening as early as 06:00 GMT in a bid to tempt customers in.Market analyst Experian says online spending is expected to be the “biggest...

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Bolivia’s Morales visits Cuba after Chavez surgery

HAVANA (AP) — Bolivian President Evo Morales has made a lightning trip to Havana where key ally Hugo Chavez is convalescing after cancer surgery.Morales did not speak to foreign journalists during his weekend visit. Cuban state-run media didn’t confirm that he visited Chavez, but said he came “to express his support” for the Venezuelan president. The Cuban government had invited media to cover Morales’...

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Holiday music stops at Irving Berlin’s NY door

NEW YORK (AP) — A caroling group that for 35 years has performed the Irving Berlin classic “White Christmas” on Christmas Eve outside the New York City home where he lived has cancelled the tradition.A group spokesman says the plans were abruptly cancelled last week for lack of space at the Manhattan home, which now serves as the Luxembourg consulate.The tradition started in the late 1970s with one...

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Lawmakers play waiting game with ‘fiscal cliff’ deadline in sight

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – With only a week left before a deadline for the United States to go over a “fiscal cliff,” lawmakers played a waiting game on Monday in the hope that someone will produce a plan to avoid harsh budget cuts and higher taxes for most Americans from New Year’s Day.Though Republicans and Democrats have spent the better part of a year describing a plunge off the cliff as a looming...

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Macy’s: Here’s What an All-Night Retail Binge Looks Like

Earlier this month, Macy’s, the second-largest department store chain in the nation, announced it would be keeping most of its stores open all night the Friday and Saturday before Christmas. To check out the early morning scene, Bloomberg Businessweek sent three reporters from the Billfold to various Macy’s around the country.Macy’s Herald Square, New York, Saturday, Dec. 22., 12:20 a.m. East Coast...

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Taliban not demanding Afghan power monopoly

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Taliban representatives at a conference did not insist on total power in Afghanistan and pledged to grant rights to women that the militant Islamist group itself brutally suppressed in the past, according to a Taliban statement received Sunday.The pledges emerged from a rare meeting last week involving Taliban and Kabul government representatives.The less strident substance...

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RIM shares fall at the open after earnings

TORONTO (Reuters) – Research In Motion Ltd fell in early trading on Friday following the BlackBerry maker’s Thursday earnings announcement, when the company outlined plans to change the way it charges for services.RIM, pushing to revive its fortunes with the launch of its new BlackBerry 10 devices next month, surprised investors when it said it plans to alter its service revenue model, a move that...

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Bethenny Frankel and husband of 2 years separating

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Bethenny Frankel and husband Jason Hoppy are separating.The 42-year-old TV personality, chef, author and entrepreneur told The Associated Press Sunday that the split brings her “great sadness.”“This was an extremely difficult decision that as a woman and a mother, I have to accept as the best choice for our family,” Frankel said. “We have love and respect for one another and will...

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Few tests done at toxic sites after superstorm

OLD BRIDGE, N.J. (AP) — For more than a month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has said that the recent superstorm didn’t cause significant problems at any of the 247 Superfund toxic waste sites it’s monitoring in New York and New Jersey.But in many cases, no actual tests of soil or water are being conducted, just visual inspections.The EPA conducted a handful of tests right after the storm,...

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‘Acceptable’ festive sales predicted

23 December 2012 Last updated at 17:40 ETChristmas sales figures are likely to be “acceptable” rather than “exceptional”, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has predicted.It has estimated that £5bn will have been spent in Britain’s shops over the weekend, as millions of people stocked up on food, drink and presents.The BRC says many shoppers waited until the last minute to pick up a bargain.Meanwhile,...

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