Rising worker productivity, innovation boosts profits but may lessen hiring need

MAXTON, N.C. - Not far from where Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke grew up, a revolution inside a Campbell Soup Co. plant explains why corporations are piling up profits - with little need to hire more people.

Incentives needed to retain disabled workers to slow Social Security costs, report says

The government should create incentives for employers to retain disabled workers as a way of slowing the spiraling costs of the Social Security disability program, according to a new report.

Banks buy $2.37 billion more in GM shares

General Motors inched further forward in its effort to repay taxpayers, announcing Friday that the banks backing its historic initial public offering had exercised their right to buy an additional block of shares in the restructured automaker.

Debt crisis escalates in Europe; fears grow about Spain

LONDON - The debt crisis in Europe escalated sharply Friday as investors dumped Spanish and Portuguese bonds in panicked selling, substantially heightening the prospect that one or both countries may need to join troubled Ireland and Greece in soliciting international bailouts.

Black Friday action: Shoppers are eager for deals

The traditional holiday shopping season kicked off Friday with retailers reporting longer lines than last year and customers saying they were more willing to spend, boosting hopes that the coming weeks could give the economy a badly needed nudge.

Euro will survive debt crisis, German Chancellor Merkel says

BERLIN - The 16-nation euro currency will survive the debt crisis, German Chancellor Angela Merkel vowed Thursday, and a senior central banker said the European Union would be willing to increase its 750 billion euro ($1 trillion) bailout fund if necessary.

Irish opposition leaders vow to redraft austerity plan if they win power

DUBLIN - Opposition leaders vowed Thursday to rewrite Ireland's harsh four-year austerity plan if, as expected, they oust Prime Minister Brian Cowen in early elections next year.

More retailers, anticipating sales boost over 2009, opened on Thanksgiving Day

The lines are shorter and there's no maddening battles for parking like the chaos so often associated with Black Friday, but Thanksgiving Day proved to be a formidable bargain-hunting opportunity day in its own right for some consumers.

G-20 strives for a deeper form of economic cooperation after Seoul summit

Can leaders accept short-term pain at home for longer-term benefits for the global economy?

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For computer shoppers, the usual suspects: Mac vs. PC, desktops vs. laptops

The humble desktop or laptop computer hasn't yet sunk to the status of commodity product, but it's getting close. On one hand, processing power, memory and storage keep getting cheaper and more plentiful; on the other, competing manufacturers have been settling on the same set of features.