Business news with words consumer+department. 60 or more news.

Starting Jan. 1, customers with complaints against design professionals, from architects to landscape engineers, must first submit their claims to the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

HONG Kong's exports grew at the slowest pace in 14 months in November on weak demand in the United States, where a housing recession threatens to stall economic growth. Shipments rose 6.6 percent from a year earlier to HK$244 billion (US$31 billion) after gaining 9.8 percent in October, the statistics department said yesterday. The deepest housing slump in 16 years may undermine US consumer spending. The US economy will expand at a one percent annual pace in the fourth quarter after growing at a 4.9 percent rate from July through September, according to the median forecast of economists surveyed this month by Bloomberg News.

The Kansas Insurance Department's Consumer Assistance Division -- which fields calls from companies, agents, attorneys and consumers -- recovered $13 million this year, making 2007 a record year, officials announced Wednesday. The division, which is divided into Life & Health, and Property & Casualty, investigates inquiries and complaints and recovers money by settling consumer disputes with insurance companies. In 2007, the units closed more than 4,000 complaints and more than 1,400 inquiries. -- Andi Atwater Air Astana to buy Airbus and Boeing jetliners

OIL prices drifted higher in light holiday trading yesterday after predictions of a drop in crude inventories raised new supply concerns. With little other news to motivate buying or selling, investors focused on forecasts by analysts including Addison Armstrong, director of exchange traded markets at TFS Energy Futures LLC, who predicted crude inventories fell by 1.5 million barrels last week. Tim Evans, an analyst at Citigroup Inc, predicted that crude stocks fell by 2 million to 3 million barrels. The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reports oil inventories on Thursday this week, a day late due to Christmas. Light, sweet crude for February delivery rose 82 cents to settle at US$94.13 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after falling as low as US$92.50 earlier. Prices rose more than US$2 on Friday after the government reported consumer spending jumped more than expected in November, raising hopes that the economy will weather the crisis roiling

CONSUMER spending in the United States rose more than forecast in November, allaying concern that the slowest shopping season in five years may have already pushed the economy into recession. Purchases gained 1.1 percent after a 0.4 percent increase in October that was more than previously estimated, the US Commerce Department said on Friday in Washington, according to Bloomberg News. Incomes also advanced, while the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation accelerated. While the gain in November spending was the biggest in more than two years, it preceded reports by retailers that warned of a slump in purchases. A private report on Friday showed consumer confidence slid to the lowest level in more than two years in December. Economists forecast spending would rise 0.7 percent, after an originally reported 0.2 percent increase in October.

OIL prices jumped in light trading yesterday after the government reported that consumer spending surged last month, raising hopes that the US economy will weather the crisis roiling credit markets and that demand for oil and gasoline will strengthen. The Commerce Department said consumer spending jumped 1.1 percent in November, the biggest one-month gain since 2004 and well above analyst expectations for an 0.7 percent increase. Light, sweet crude for February delivery rose US$2.25 to settle at US$93.31 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil prices were also supported by stocks, which rose yesterday, and a slightly weaker dollar. Energy investors often view stock market moves as reflective of overall economic sentiment. Also, oil futures offer a hedge against a weak dollar, and oil futures bought and sold in dollars are more attractive to foreign investors when the greenback is falling. Many observers blame oil's rise last month to near US$100 on speculators

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Crude oil rallied more than $2 Friday to over $93 a barrel after a government report showed November U.S. consumer spending increased by the largest margin in more than two years, easing fears that oil demand from the world's largest crude consumer may slow. Crude oil for February delivery ended the session up $2.25, or 2.5%, at $93.31 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The Commerce Department reported Friday that U.S. nominal consumer spending increased 1.1%, the most in two and a half years. Economists had been expecting November's spending to rise 0.9%. At the same time, nominal incomes only rose 0.4% in the same month.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. consumers spent more than they earned in November, driving the personal savings rate negative for the first time in 15 months but giving a boost to a sagging economy, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Core inflation increased 0.2% for the month, less than the 0.3% expected, but the year-over-year gain accelerated to 2.2%, well above the Federal Reserve's target rate. Nominal incomes rose 0.4%. After taking out taxes and adjusting for the highest inflation since September 2005, real disposable incomes fell 0.3%. Nominal consumer spending increased 1.1%, the most in three and a half years. After adjusting for inflation of 0.6% in November, real consumer spending increased 0.5%.

OVERALL consumer prices in Hong Kong rose 3.4 percent year on year in November, slightly higher than October's 3.2 percent, the Census and Statistics Department said yesterday. The larger increase was mainly attributed to higher costs for town gas, private housing rents, outdoor dining as well as package tours, a spokesman for the department said. The spokesman said forecast for inflation in 2007 remained unchanged at two percent, adding that the slightly higher increase in November had been taken into account in the outlook, which was announced in mid-November. Looking ahead, sustained economic expansion, high food and oil prices, the weak US dollar and the appreciation of the yuan would continue to exert pressures, he added. "Lately, the pick-up in private housing rents also deserved attention. Yet the sustained increase in labor productivity should help mitigate the pressures to some extent," he added. For the three-month period ended November, the average

CONSUMER confidence is falling, the odds of a recession have risen, analysts predict the worst holiday shopping since 2002 - and retail-industry executives are buying their companies' shares like never before. Limited Brands Inc Chief Executive Officer Leslie Wexner and eight other executives bought a record amount of stock last month after prices fell to a four-year low. Dillard's Inc director Warren Stephens made the biggest insider purchase ever as shares of the Arkansas-based department store chain headed for the steepest decline since at least 1980. Cambiar Investors LLC, Royce & Associates LLC and Becker Capital Management Inc say insider buying foreshadows a rebound. The last four times executives added to their holdings, the Standard & Poor's Supercomposite Retailing Index rose an average 9.9 percent in the next three months, topping a 6.2-percent average rise in the S&P 500 Index. Retail company officials increased their investments by US$346.4 million since the start

STOCKS sold off yesterday after a jump in consumer inflation raised concerns about how much freedom the Federal Reserve has to continue cutting interest rates. The Dow Jones industrial average gave up more than 178 points. The Labor Department said the consumer price index rose 0.8 percent in November amid a spike in gasoline prices. The report also found large increases in the cost of clothing, airline tickets and prescription drugs. The report raises questions about the Fed's options for priming the economy. The Fed this week lowered interest rates and announced a plan to align with other key central banks and offer loans to pressed lenders around the world. But while it wants to stimulate the U.S. economy and make lending easier among banks wary of faltering debt, the Fed also has to keep a watchful eye on inflation. Robert Dye, senior economist at PNC Financial Services Group, said the economic readings this week painted a mixed picture for investors, spurring some of the

Stocks finished a bruising week on the downside Friday after a jump in consumer inflation raised concerns about how much freedom the Federal Reserve has to continue cutting interest rates. The Dow Jones industrial average gave up more than 178 points. Concerns emerged after the Labor Department reported its consumer price index had a bigger-than-expected jump for November, with large increases in the cost of clothing, airline tickets and prescription drugs. That raised questions about the Fed's options for priming the economy. Policymakers this week lowered interest rates and announced a plan to align with other key central banks and offer loans to pressed lenders around the world. But while it wants to stimulate the U.S. economy and make lending easier among banks wary of faltering debt, the Fed also has to keep a watchful eye on inflation. Robert Dye, senior economist at PNC Financial Services Group, said the economic readings this week painted a mixed picture for investors, spurring some of the market's volatility. "If you take the stronger-than-expected economic data we saw this week in the form of retail sales and add to that the inflation data and then combine that with a somewhat ambiguous statement from the Fed, you get a picture as clear as mud," he said.

Consumer prices soared at the fastest pace in two years in November on red-hot energy costs, the Labor Department said Friday. That's the latest...

Higher gas prices sent U.S. consumer inflation in November to its biggest jump since September 2005, the U.S. Labour Department said Friday.

Stocks fell Friday after a jump in consumer inflation raised concerns about how much freedom the Federal Reserve has to continue cutting interest rates. The Labor Department said the consumer price index rose 0.8 percent in November amid a spike in...

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Treasury bonds declined early Friday, sending yields higher, coming under pressure after the Labor Department reported hotter-than-expected consumer price inflation for November. The benchmark 10-year Treasury note dropped 9/32 to 100 3/32, its yield rising to 4.238%. "Another round of hot inflation data has driven yields sharply higher, though some of the news was discounted in advance of the CPI figures," said analysts at Action Economics. "The short-end is underperforming for the moment, leading to curve flattening, given the Fed policy implications and potential foreshortening of the easing cycle once the Fed manages to ensure liquidity over year-end with its TAF plans," they said.

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The dollar strengthened against other major currencies early Friday, getting a boost after the Labor Department reported hotter-than-expected consumer price inflation for November. The dollar rose 0.7% against the yen at 113.07 yen. The euro gave up 1% at $1.4491. The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of other major currencies, rose 0.8% at 77.145. The consumer price index increased 0.8%, driven by a 5.7% gain in energy prices, the biggest gain in consumer prices in more than two years. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 0.3%, the biggest gain since January. The numbers were worse than expected. Economists were forecasting the CPI to rise 0.7% and the core rate to rise 0.2%, according to a survey conducted by MarketWatch.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The underlying rate of U.S. inflation accelerated in November, the Labor Department said Friday. The consumer price index increased 0.8%, driven by a 5.7% gain in energy prices, the fastest increase in energy prices since March. This is the biggest gain in consumer prices in more than two years. Food prices rose 0.3%, and apparel, airline and drug prices also spiked. The core CPI, which excludes food and energy costs, was up 0.3% in November, the biggest gain since January. Economists were expecting the CPI to rise 0.7% in November after a 0.3% gain in October. The core rate was expected to rise 0.2% after rising 0.2% in the previous month.

John Lewis, the department store chain, is on track to see weekly sales of £100m for the first time ever this week, bringing a much-needed boost to the retail sector after a sluggish start to the Christmas trading season. The record-breaking figure, never before achieved in the retailer's 143-year history, will help to dispel fears of a widespread consumer slowdown. John Lewis said that sales between Sunday and yesterday morning were up by 7.4pc compared to the same week last year. That week, the retailer reported sales of £93.8m. This means that if sales growth continues at its current level until Saturday,

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Dialing the complaint department to report a banking problem should be straightforward. But consumer advocates say the process to log complaints or inquiries can be confusing and some are supporting a proposal in Washington to establish a toll-free hotline that would help customers navigate the banking system.