High street sales fell more sharply than feared, and retailers expect the Christmas shopping period will be especially slow, the CBI says.

Over the difficult economic climate of the next twelve months, 79% of Britons are going to reduce their spending, most dramatically in the areas of fashion, restaurants, music/DVDs, home furnishings and travel, according to new research into retail trends by

Companies with consumer facing websites may need to re-evaluate their existing online service systems in order to provide fast, efficient responses to customer enquiries.

Pret A Manger, the high-street food chain, is the latest retailer to offer contactless payment facilities to its customers.

The 2008 web browser explosion could not have come at a worse time: the biggest online Christmas shopping season ever with sales predicted to peak on December 8th.

Confidence in the "personal financial situation over the next 12 months" measure has risen two points.

An increasing number of city slickers are pawning items to pay for Christmas, handing over luxury cars and jewellery to get cash

Weekly stock market report:It was a week that began with a controversial mini-Budget from the Chancellor and ended with the effective nationalisation of one of our biggest banks

The tumbling pound is good news for UK gold investors who have seen its sterling value hit new heights, despite the dollar price falling since the start of the year

In a season that inspires earnest letters about toys, one notable batch is being sent not by kids to Santa's workshop but by ...

The nation's retailers got a much-needed sales boost during Black Friday's traditional shopathon as consumers spent more money ...

HERRIN - Quicker diagnoses for patients leading to improved care at Herrin Hospital are now possible with the implementation of a new MRI machine and fluoroscopic unit.

Clipius Technologies of Murphysboro was one of two runners-up selected earlier this week in the 2008 Innovate Illinois entrepreneurial innovation competition at the University of Chicago's Gleacher Center. The company creates antimicrobial coatings for spinal implants and instrumentation. It received

ALTO PASS - It's the end of an era in the local antique world, and the closing of a major Alto Pass business.

The Southern CARBONDALE - A Carbondale native and Southern Illinois University Carbondale graduate is the new city president and community banking team leader for Regions Financial Corporation's Southern Illinois market.

Michelle Costello may laugh when she describes the challenges of juggling a career and caring for sick preschoolers, but she's not joking.

Ghana's stock exchange is up 60 per cent this year according to the official indicator, in sharp contrast to other emerging markets which are down more than 60 per cent, savaged by recent market turmoil.

The oil-producing group's president, Chakib Khelil, said OPEC is concerned about the weakening world economy and its impact on oil prices. The group, however, will likely wait until a meeting in Algeria on Dec. 17 to decide whether to cut

The first question can't reliably be answered. As for the second one, the country's biggest player in exchange-traded funds is going with wrap products.