Economy Dec 12 Consumers aren't having a very merry holiday season, AP-NORC poll finds Roughly half of Americans say it’s harder than usual to afford the things they want to give as holiday gifts, and similar numbers are delaying big purchases or cutting back on nonessential purchases more than they would normally. By Josh Boak, Amelia Thomson-Deveaux, Associated Press
Economy Dec 03 What's next for U.S. retailers after the Thanksgiving shopping weekend The nation’s shoppers may feel gloomy about the economy, but they certainly were in the mood to shop over the five-day Thanksgiving weekend that wrapped up on Cyber Monday. By Anne D'Innocenzio, Associated Press
Economy Dec 01 Consumers urged to do research before giving in to Travel Tuesday deals On the same day as the nonprofit world’s Giving Tuesday, airlines, hotels, cruise ship companies, travel booking platforms and tour operators get in on the annual spirit to spend by promoting one-day deals. By Cora Lewis, Associated Press
Economy Nov 28 U.S. retailers are about to see if shoppers are willing to spend on Black Friday The annual sales event still brings more shoppers into stores than any day of the year and still rules as the U.S. retail industry's unofficial start of the holiday shopping season. By Anne D'Innocenzio
Aug 03 Personalized pricing has spread across many industries. Here's how consumers can avoid it By Jay L. Zagorsky, The Conversation As AI powers individualized pricing across industries, businesses are increasingly charging based on what they think you can pay. Continue reading
Jun 13 Consumer sentiment rises for first time in 2025 as inflation remains tame By Christopher Rugaber, Associated Press The preliminary reading of the University of Michigan’s closely watched consumer sentiment index, released Friday, jumped 16% from 52.2 to 60.5. Continue reading
Feb 27 What to know about the Feb. 28 economic boycott By Anne D'Innocenzio and Haleluya Hadero, Associated Press A grassroots organization is encouraging U.S. residents not to spend any money Friday as an act of “economic resistance” to protest what the group's founder sees as the malign influence of billionaires, big corporations and both major political parties on… Continue reading
Dec 31 Analysis: How will inflation, interest rates and the U.S. consumer fare in 2025? By D. Brian Blank, Brandy Hadley, The Conversation Two finance scholars share key questions and risks they’re watching as we ring in the new year. Continue reading
Oct 16 FTC adopts 'click-to-cancel' rule making it easier to get rid of unwanted subscriptions By Haleluya Hadero, Associated Press The rule will prohibit retailers and other businesses from misleading people about subscriptions and require them to obtain consumers’ consent before charging for memberships, auto-renewals and programs linked to free trial offers. Continue reading