IBT Staff Reporter

U.S. retail sales continued to rise in November for the fifth month, boosted by holiday shopping as well as fuel prices, the U.S. Commerce Department said.

Retail sales were stronger than expected in November as consumers stepped up despite the shadow of high unemployment, while producer prices rose, offering further evidence the economic recovery gathered steam in the fourth quarter.

Sales at retailers rose more than expected in November as consumers splurged on clothing and other items at the start of the holiday season and receipts at gasoline stations surged, more evidence the economic recovery gathered steam in the fourth quarter.

Fancy new features like 3D screens and Internet connectivity have failed to inspire U.S. television shoppers, dashing a hoped-for recovery in the global consumer electronics industry.

Rafael Nadal and Caroline Wozniacki have been crowned the International Tennis Federation world champions for the year 2010.

Wipro Ltd said its global consulting, system integration and its outsourcing business unit Wipro Technologies has opened its new development center in Budapest, Hungary, to service Magyar Telekom, Hungary’s biggest telecom service provider.

Prosecutors said on Tuesday they would appeal against a British judge's decision to grant bail to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who has been arrested in Britain on Swedish allegations of sex crimes.

The Federal Reserve said on Tuesday it ordered Weststar Financial Services Corp to refrain from paying dividends or otherwise reducing the capital from its main subsidiary, The Bank of Asheville, in North Carolina.

The National Retail Federation raised its holiday sales forecast, saying stock market gains and higher income have lifted consumer confidence and given shoppers the ability to spend more this year.

The European Central Bank could decide this week on whether to increase its capital -- giving it a cushion against any losses on its bond purchases -- after Germany threw its weight behind the idea on Tuesday.

A Qatar astronomer and scientists at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics have discovered a new alien planet, named as Qatar-1b, bigger than Jupiter.

Strong November retail sales lifted U.S. stocks on Tuesday on optimism about consumer spending, even as weak sales from electronics bellwether Best Buy showed some specialty retailers could be struggling.

As Congress considers a broad tax deal proposed by President Barack Obama and Republicans, high tech and manufacturing businesses are particularly favorable to a provision that would extend research and development tax credits.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter sparked controversy with his response to gay rights groups' criticism of FIFA, when he joked that the gay fans travelling to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup should refrain from any sexual activities.

The Apple engineer talks about how he created an Ancient Greek computing device, the Antikythera Mechanism out of Legos.

Demand is strong at David Dumas' South Carolina men's clothing store, but after being battered during the past two holiday seasons by the recession and financial market meltdown, he does not want to get too excited.

Members of the World Trade Organization are showing new energy and determination to reach a global trade deal but must now abandon fixed positions to clinch the agreement, the head of the WTO said on Tuesday.

Shall I compare thee to a Summer's day?, asked Shakespeare. Now, women of the world have replied: No, just tell me I have beautiful lips.

Thomson Reuters Corp has launched a news service for U.S. publishers and broadcasters in a bid to win business from the Associated Press and CNN.

Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University has introduced a unique specialization for water business aspirants as part of its Executive MBA program, in association with Wetsus, the Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology

Dollar Libor rates were steady on Tuesday as Federal Reserve officials met to assess their controversial bond buying program against a backdrop of fresh tax cuts that could lift U.S. economic growth.

Nissan Motor Co and Mitsubishi Motors Corporation said on Tuesday that the two companies agreed to expand their current scope of cooperation towards new projects that will further strengthen mutual competitiveness, especially in the Japanese mini car and global commercial vehicle businesses.

France will levy a 1 percent what it dubbed as ‘Google tax’ on online advertisements, effective January 1.

Microsoft could demo a host of new tablets at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in January.

Standard & Poor's cut its outlook for Belgian debt to negative on Tuesday, flagging a new risk for money markets as investors weighed prospects of higher borrowing costs for one of the euro zone's most indebted states.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, arrested in Britain on Swedish allegations of sex crimes, was granted bail by a London court on Tuesday.

Bank holding companies would have to maintain the same capital levels as their federally insured banking units under a proposal issued by U.S. bank regulators on Tuesday.

In a sign that cyber security needs rapid quality improvements, two more U.S. companies, McDonald's Corp and Walgreen Co, said they had been hacked in the past week, along with U.S. media company, Gawker.

Gwyneth Paltrow has her second shot as substitute teacher in the musical 'Glee'.