There is big buzz about who's going to dress Michelle Obama for the inauguration. To help figure out what that might mean for clothing retailers, Kai Ryssdal talked with Kate Betts, editor-in-chief of Time's Style & Design.

Retail experts are predicting the weakest holiday shopping season in decades, and consumers' spending on Black Friday isn't changing that view. Today, retail stocks were down. Janet Babin reports.

Online stores have thrived thanks to the advantages of the Web, but this season they're expected to feel the effects of the economic downturn. Danielle Karson reports where e-commerce might still have a slight edge.

The numbers for the Thanksgiving shopping weekend are in, and sales were up 17% from this time last year — and the average consumer spent more, too. Jill Barshay explores why Black Friday wasn't so bleak.

Malls across the country are entering foreclosure as store sales are down and mall owners can't refinance in times of tough credit. Nancy Marshall Genzer looks into the credit crunch's effect on malls nationwide.

A stampede of Black Friday shoppers trampled a man to death on Long Island, and two shoppers were shot to death in a toy store near Palm Springs. In spite of the crowds, some analysts said sales were down. Ashley Milne-Tyte reports.

Obama's economic team was a big story this week. Kai Ryssdal talks with N.Y. Times columnist David Leonhardt and Atlantic.com writer Megan McArdle about the president-elect's picks and other market news.

While the stores throw deep discounts to their customers in order to hit sales out of the park today, shoppers are spending carefully. Danielle Karson spoke to a few at a mall in Bethesda, Maryland this morning.

While the crowds are swarming some stores around the country, other retail openings went off with less of a bang. Still, some shoppers enjoy coming in early in the morning for other reasons. Phillip Martin has more.