Marketplace®

Daily business news and economic stories
  • Several big retailers will increase their ranks of seasonal workers, as consumer spending picks up.

  • Retailers lost profits during the key weekend of the post-holiday season, as many shoppers opted to stay home. Marketplace's Janet Babin reports.

  • Deciding what to get someone at Christmas and how many people to give gifts to can be torture for some. Gift cards and cash just lessen the pain. But is a giving someone a gift certificate or money soulless? Sarah Gardner goes shopping for some answers.

  • The National Retail Federation predicts sales this holiday shopping season will come in 3.3% higher than last year. But not everyone is celebrating this time of year. What's the season like for people who don't celebrate Christmas? Mitchell Hartman reports.

  • Stacey Vanek Smith talks with the L.A. Times' consumer columnist David Lazarus about why consumer spending's up this season, and what to be wary of when you're out shopping.

  • 'Tis the season for gift giving but do you know exactly what you're buying? Marketplace reporter Adriene Hill ventures out on a shopping expedition to find out which holiday gifts are as green as they say to be.

  • All the good sales used to be after Christmas. But after the financial crisis, stores got desperate, and they started having sales before Christmas. So will last-minute bargain-hunters find the deals they're looking for?

  • Searching for that last-minute gift? You might find those store shelves empty. Retailers, in anticipation of low shopping numbers, ordered less stock this year, just to play it safe.

  • Thinking of going green this holiday season? Sustainability reporter Adriene Hill takes us on her journey as she goes hunting for eco-friendly gifts.

  • Kai Ryssdal talks to G4's Kevin Pereira about the latest in 3D technology. You can put it in your living room, but it's pretty pricey!

Holiday Shopping