U.S. markets down on Black Friday

Word an investment company owned by the Dubai government needed to reorganize shook markets in Asia and Europe, as well.

Economic Outlook: Crash course in retail

The day was so loaded with discounts a year ago it was hard to fit the numbers into the normal patterns. Retailers, in mid-recession, reached back and slashed prices mercilessly, sometimes as much as 70 percent, The Washington Post reported Friday.

Crude oil prices tumble

Markets turned Friday on news that Dubai World, a government-owned investment company, had asked for a six-month delay on repayments for $59 billion in debts.

Dubai debt freeze 'carefully planned'

Chairman of the Supreme Fiscal Committee Sheik Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum said the UAE government is spearheading the restructuring of this commercial operation in the full knowledge of how the markets would react. Dubai World holds the major portion of Dubai's estimated $80 billion debt.

Shoppers using phones to find bargains

Deloitte says savvy young people plan to use cell phones to find store locations, obtain coupons and sales information, and research products and prices, USA Today reported Friday.

Japan concerned about yen rise

Hirohisa Fujii told reporters the Japanese currency's sharp jump to a 14-year high against the greenback was one-sided. Such a trend could further adversely affect the export-dependent Japanese economy, which the government last week said was experiencing mild deflation due to declining prices and wages.

Black Friday kicks off holiday shopping

Consulting firm Accenture predicted about 52 percent of consumers -- up from 42 percent in 2008 -- would hit the stores before dawn to buy deeply discounted items and build what retailers hope will be spending momentum before the holidays, The Washington Post reported.

Economic Outlook: Crash course in retail

The day was so loaded with discounts a year ago it was hard to fit the numbers into the normal patterns. Retailers, in mid-recession, reached back and slashed prices mercilessly, sometimes as much as 70 percent, The Washington Post reported Friday.

Casino company files for bankruptcy

A federal bankruptcy judge in Delaware gave Majestic Star Casino LLC permission to continue paying its employees and bills while it undergoes restructuring, the Gary (Ind.) Post-Tribune reported Thursday. The company can also continue to provide comps to its best customers.

Last U.S. Pontiac rolls off the line

GM kept the news media out of its Orion plant Wednesday as the last 100 Pontiac G6s rolled off the line, The Detroit News reported Thursday. The cars were part of an order by a single fleet.

More companies allowing cyber shopping

Claire Simmers -- a professor of management at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia and co-author of the book The Internet and Workplace Transformation -- says employers have feared cyber Monday can turn into cyber Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and it can be expensive for employers to pay staff to shop.

Emissions cuts no shock to Corp. America

So business leaders weren't surprised when the White House said Wednesday U.S. President Barack Obama would tell a U.N.-sponsored climate-change summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, next month the United States intended to cut carbon dioxide emissions by about 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020 and by 83 percent by 2050, The New York Times reported.